Hear From Our Friends:
I had first originally stopped in here for hand therapy from an auto accident. The staff here were truly helpful in speeding up my recovery as well as providing beneficial information to help my recovery at home. I would highly recommend this location as well as the people here to anyone in the future looking for services, as they truly are experts at their profession, from the initial point of contact to the actual therapist everything was and has been amazing, I thank Donna, Brandon, Allie, Nidia, and Alejandra , and any others my memory has lest me forget; for their superb professionalism, compassion, kindness and quality care. Thank you.
-Stefanos G
Avondale Desert Hand Therapy
Address
1860 N. 95th Lane, Suite 105
Phoenix, AZ 85037
Phone: 623-907-0828
Fax: 623-907-3058
Hours
Monday – Friday 7:30 am-5:30 pm
[Closed for Lunch 11:45pm – 12:45pm]
Meet Our Staff
Anna Espeland OTD, OTR/L
Joined DHPT in 2024. She earned her undergraduate degree from Montana State University and her Doctorate of Occupational Therapy from the University of Mary.
With a diverse range of experience, Anna has worked with individuals facing musculoskeletal, orthopedic, and neurological conditions. One of the aspects she values most about occupational therapy is its holistic approach. She enjoys building personal connections with her patients and developing individualized care plans to help them achieve their goals and return to their daily lives.
Anna is currently pursuing certification as a hand therapist and is an active member of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA).
In her free time, she loves to spend time outdoors, whether it’s golfing, playing tennis, hiking, kayaking, snowboarding, or rock climbing. Her favorite life motto is: “The grass is always greener where you make it.”
Donna M. Gilbert, OTR/L, CHT
Donna attended Kearney State in Nebraska and the University of Nebraska in Omaha before obtaining her B.S. in Occupational Therapy at Loma Linda University in California in 1992. She has enjoyed working in the specialty field of Hand and Upper Extremity Rehabilitation for the past 23 years in Kansas City and Phoenix areas. She obtained her Hand Therapy Certification in 2001.
She joined the team at Desert Hand Therapy in 2001. She continues to treat patients at our Avondale clinic location while acting as a director of our North Phoenix, Surprise and Avondale locations. She is an active member of AOTA, AriZota, NBCOT, and ASHT. Currently, she is the Legislative Co-chair for the Arizona Occupational Therapy Association.
Joy Ramsey, MS, PT
Joy graduated from Sanford University in 1989 and earned her Master’s in Physical Therapy from the University of Alabama Birmingham in 1991. For over 29 years, she has worked at in-house rehabs, outpatient clinics, school systems, and home health addressing a variety of diagnoses as it applies specifically to every age group. This includes patients with strokes, head and spinal injuries, work injuries, amputees, orthopedic procedures, sports weekend warrior injuries, back, shoulder & neck pain, TMJ issues, and developmental delays.
In June 2015, Joy joined the Desert Hand & Physical Therapy team as a hand therapist, while also developing a full-body PT program at the Estrella office.
Her hobbies include golf, gardening, travel, and spending time with family. Joy is native to Nashville, TN. She has practiced PT in Birmingham AL, Naples FL, and Phoenix AZ for the last 20 years.
Mikayla Murphy, OTR/L
Joined DHPT in 2024 after earning her degree from Midwestern University.
Her career has been marked by a passion for helping individuals regain independence in their daily activities. Mikayla particularly enjoys identifying meaningful activities that have been disrupted and applying her knowledge of anatomy through activity analysis to create personalized intervention plans for her patients.
She is eager to further her career by becoming a certified hand therapist and is a member of both the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) and the Arizona Occupational Therapy Association (ArizOTA).
In her free time, Mikayla enjoys spending time with friends and family and is always exploring new places around the Phoenix area. Her favorite life motto is: “The race is not for the swift, but those who endure to the end.”
Reviews
I was in a motorcycle accident and had many injuries that needed physical therapy for. I was recommended to desert hand. Everyone from the front desk Nidia and Alejandra are extremely friendly and courteous. Always meets you with a smile and warming environment. Since I had multiple fractures hands and legs I was blessed with meeting Donna for my hands with the help of Garrett and Kelsey. Then for my legs it was Sarah with a big smile an a great attitude. She is alway positive and motivating. But she has great coworkers around her to help out like Jess. She is always on both sides with a big smile helping where ever she can. I can never say I Dnt see her stop doing something or helping someone. Just an all around great bunch of people to be around for therapy and positive environment to get better.
I have nothing bad to say about this place at all. So far everyone has been helpful and patient with my healing. Yes, pt can and will hurt in some cases but that’s part of the process not the therapist fault. Donna, my therapist, as well as any other staff member I have had the pleasure of meeting, has been extremely kind, caring and tries to keep me as comfortable as possible even though it hurts the entire time. That’s just the nature of my injury and most other major ones.
My experience at Desert Hand and Physical therapy was Amazing! This was my second time there. Last time it was for my knee, this time I had carpal tunnel. It was great a second time going there! They really care about you and help you understand what’s going on and what can be done to try and give you more mobility and help with the pain you’re experiencing. Thank you to Mikala, Jenn, Joy and Carlos. All of you really helped me and I appreciate it! The ladies at the desk were all so friendly and I am thankful for everyone and their kindness!
Avondale
1860 N. 95th Lane, Suite 105
Phoenix, AZ 85037
