Karen Mainzer OT, CHT has over 24 years of experience treating in outpatient hand therapy settings.  She has a been a member of ASHT for 3 years and is a new member of the Awards Committee and Education Division.  She was born and raised in St. Louis and is a graduate of the University of Kansas.  She has worked in Kansas City, England, and St. Louis, and currently resides in Utah where she is an active educator within her team at Intermountain Health.  She is a contributor to a multidisciplinary chronic pain working group within Intermountain Health and has developed a passionate interest in how the nervous system and psychosocial factors influence her patient's pain experience and how hand therapists can better use pain neuroscience education to improve outcomes.