"I had two months of wires sticking out of my fingers, where I wasn't allowed to move them, so that was an issue to start with.
"I couldn't drive, I couldn't change my baby's nappies, I couldn't do any of that stuff, it made life quite difficult."
Halfway through her therapy, she decided to write an email to the DHB asking why the service wasn't in Wairarapa.
"I thought 'there's no harm in asking if this couldn't be established'."
Allied Health executive director Russell Simpson said he was thankful Ms Bryant had emailed as other patients would now benefit from her action.
Natalie Richardson, director at Allied Health, said it took about a year to put the service in place.
Hutt DHB hand therapist Theresa Vaughan said hand injuries are quite common, ranging from kitchen knife cuts to hands getting caught in machines.
Since April, she has been working with 6 to 9 patients every Thursday at Wairarapa Hospital.
Wood splitter and farming injuries are fairly common in Wairarapa, she said.
Mrs Vaughan said the distance people used to have to travel did affect whether people kept appointments.
She said it is better to treat an injury right from the start rather than delaying it, which can happen in a rural place like Wairarapa.
"You don't realise, you sort of think it's a simple thing.
"But the logistics of rearranging when you can't fulfil any of your normal roles, you can't go to work, you can't drive, or you can't be a mother fully, it's really hard for people."
Ms Bryant said a lot of people asked why she didn't just go to the physio.
Mrs Vaughan said hand injuries are far better treated by a hand therapist than a general physiotherapist. "The hand is so intricate and you are so dependent on the finer details of what your hand does."
