Do Demographic and Clinical Characteristics Predict Utilisation of a Community Based Musculoskeletal Triage Service? A Retrospective Cohort Study

Introduction: In the United Kingdom, 20 million people are affected by musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions. To reduce the burden on GP surgeries, there are now MSK triage services where patients are diagnosed and managed by allied health professionals. There is limited research exploring the sociodemographic characteristics and reasons for attendance of those using the MSK triage service. Aim: To explore the clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of adult patients accessing an MSK triage service within Northwest England. Method: This is a retrospective cohort study using secondary data collected between 1st January 2022 and 31st December 2024. Data were extracted from an NHS electronic patient record system, including sociographic data as well as the number of consultations and diagnosis. Results: The sample included data on 6398 patients, of which 2826 (44%) were male and 3571 female (66%). The mean age was 56.9 years, the majority (83.1%) identified as White British and 28.4% of the sample resided in areas of low deprivation. Compared with lower body diagnoses, individuals with spine‐related diagnoses had 28.7% fewer consultations and those with upper‐body diagnoses had 19.2% fewer consultations. Both differences were highly significant (p < 0.001). Conclusions: These findings suggest that establishing more clearly defined clinical pathways may enhance the efficiency of service utilisation. Improving the accessibility of the MSK triage service has the potential to enhance access for both patients and referring clinicians, thereby optimising the timeliness of care delivery. This study adds to the evolving understanding of how MSK triage services can be enhanced in the NHS primary care setting.

Citation

Doran, A., Doyle, L., O'Sullivan, R., & Lafferty, M. (2025). Do Demographic and Clinical Characteristics Predict Utilisation of a Community Based Musculoskeletal Triage Service? A Retrospective Cohort Study. Musculoskeletal Care, 23(3), e70180. https://doi.org/10.1002/msc.70180

Publisher

Wiley

Journal

Musculoskeletal Care

URI

http://hdl.handle.net/10034/629584

DOI

10.1002/msc.70180

Type

Article

Description

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article, Doran, A., Doyle, L., O'Sullivan, R., & Lafferty, M. (2025). Do Demographic and Clinical Characteristics Predict Utilisation of a Community Based Musculoskeletal Triage Service? A Retrospective Cohort Study. Musculoskeletal Care, 23(3), e70180, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/msc.70180. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.

ISSN

1478-2189

EISSN

1557-0681

Additional Links

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/msc.70180