Mindy and Andra have worked together since 2009 treating hand therapy patients in the North Texas area.

Mindy Smith

Mindy Smith has been working as an Occupational Therapist since 1996 and as a hand therapist since 2000. She received her certification in hand therapy (CHT) in 2007. Mindy graduated from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas with a BA in International Studies, minors in Economics, Political Science and Spanish before deciding to return to school for a degree in Occupational Therapy. By this time, she had married and was living in North Dakotas with her husband, Steve. She graduated with her degree in Occupational Therapy from the University of North Dakota in 1996. Eventually, they returned to Texas where she started her career in hand therapy.

She has been treating Dr. Larson’s patients since he relocated to Texas: first while working at D & D Sports Med Denton and now as an in-house therapist. She loves collaborating with both Dr. Larson and his PA, Lauren, for the best possible patient outcomes. She loves meeting new people, developing relationships, and treating a variety of upper extremity diagnosis. She values working with patients to achieve their individual goals and enabling them to return to the activities that they most enjoy.

She currently lives with her husband, as empty nesters, in the Denton area with their therapy dog, Nelson. In her free time, Mindy enjoys reading, watching movies, cuddling with her dog, and eating chocolates. :)

Andra Sterzik

Andra Sterzik joins the Denton Hand & Orthopedic team as the in-house therapist, after working with DFW orthopedic, plastic, burn and hand surgeons for over twenty five years. During that time, Andra has treated diverse patient populations in a variety of therapy settings.

Andra is a 1995 graduate of the University of North Texas School of Community Service with a degree in Rehabilitation Studies. She then attended Texas Woman's University and graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Master of Occupational Therapy degree.

Her career began in 1997 at Parkland Hospital as a therapist on one of the largest civilian burn units in the nation. Andra worked treating burn injuries in the outpatient, intensive care and acute care settings. She also gained extensive experience in the treatment of traumatic hand, wrist, elbow and shoulder injuries. As her career in DFW continued, she continued to work in a variety of hospital settings treating hand and upper extremity patients.

In 2011 Andra became a Certified Hand Therapist. Since that time, Andra has continued working as an outpatient hand therapist. Her focus has included orthopedic and neurological injuries, sports medicine, work with musicians and post-surgical recovery.

Andra views therapy as a partnership between therapist and patient. Her role is to provide the anatomical knowledge, treatment understanding and therapy skills needed to progress a person through their recovery process so they can return to their favorite activities, perform their daily tasks, and help prevent future injuries as well.

Andra is proud to call Denton her home of over thirty years. She lives locally with her husband and dogs, Fiona and Kira. If you can’t find her reading or walking, you may find her cheering on her two son’s collegiate teams, UNT and University of Arkansas.