Primary Care Management of Musculoskeletal Disorders

Musculoskeletal disorders represent a leading cause of pain, disability and healthcare utilisation worldwide. In primary care settings, early assessment, accurate diagnosis and evidence-based management are essential to reduce chronicity, optimise function and limit overreliance on imaging and pharmacotherapy. Clinicians adopt a biopsychosocial approach, combining patient education, exercise prescription, manual therapy and self-management strategies. Interdisciplinary collaboration—particularly between general practitioners, physiotherapists and community health providers—supports protocol-driven care pathways that streamline referrals and prioritise patients at risk of poor outcomes. Emerging models of care emphasise direct access to allied health professionals, triage systems to match patient need with specialist skill and the integration of telehealth to extend reach into underserved areas. Globally, efforts to embed physiotherapy services in primary care have demonstrated improvements in patient satisfaction, reductions in wait times and potential cost savings. A shift towards sustainability and resource efficiency underlines the importance of training, clear role definition and ongoing evaluation of service delivery models. As populations age and the burden of chronic musculoskeletal conditions rises, innovative primary care strategies will be pivotal in maintaining patient independence and reducing health system strain.

Research from Nature Portfolio

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Primary Care Management of Musculoskeletal Disorders publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in primary care management of musculoskeletal disorders across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Biopsychosocial approach: An integrated model addressing physical, psychological and social factors influencing health.

Direct access: A service model allowing patients to seek assessment and treatment from physiotherapists without a GP referral.

First Contact Physiotherapy (FCP): A primary care pathway in which physiotherapists conduct the initial musculoskeletal assessment instead of general practitioners.

Triage: The process of prioritising patients according to the urgency of their condition and matching them with the most appropriate care provider.

References

1. Barriers and facilitators of integrating physiotherapy into primary health care settings: A systematic scoping review of qualitative research. Heliyon (2023).
2. Evaluation of the First Contact Physiotherapy (FCP) model of primary care: a qualitative insight. Physiotherapy (2021).
3. A systematic review and evidence synthesis of non-medical triage, self-referral and direct access services for patients with musculoskeletal pain. PLOS ONE (2020).