Patient access to first contact practitioner physiotherapists in the UK: A national survey

Abstract

BackgroundFirst Contact Practice Physiotherapists (FCPPs) offer expert care for patients with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions in Primary Care, usually within GP practices. This is a rapidly expanding area of practice endorsed by NHS England, the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) and the British Medical Association (BMA). Efficient and appropriate access is important for optimising FCPP practice, but there is little published information about how patients currently access FCPP appointments.ObjectiveTo investigate how patients access FCPP appointments in General Practice.DesignCross‐sectional online survey of FCPPs in the UK.MethodsFCPPs were surveyed about patient access to appointments. The survey instrument was designed using Jisc Online Surveys, piloted, and then distributed via social media and professional groups to FCPPs nationwide. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse demographic and multiple‐choice questions, and free text responses were analysed using quantitative content analysis.Results193 participants completed the survey. Booking via GP Reception (n = 179) was reported as the most common route into an FCPP appointment, closely followed by booking after seeing another clinician for the problem (n = 172).ConclusionThis research has provided clarity regarding how patients access the rapidly growing speciality of FCPP within GP practices in the UK. The role of GP Reception staff in facilitating access to FCPPs, the application of triage and the use of digital or online systems were highlighted as important elements for enabling efficient access to FCPPs by patients with MSK conditions.

The experiences of patients with musculoskeletal conditions accessing first contact physiotherapy practitioner appointments in general practice in the UK: A qualitative study

“…It provides new evidence about patient reported facilitators and barriers to access, as well as confirming key access routes, and the challenges of low awareness of the FCPP role. A previous study found that there are a variety of access routes into FCPP appointments, with the most common way being booking via Reception (Lamb et al., 2023a); another study noted that many patients have seen or spoken to a GP about their MSK condition before receiving an FCPP appointment (Lamb et al., 2023b). In this current study, five of the 13 participants had only seen the FCPP after first having a GP appointment, and one of the patients' surgeries required a GP appointment prior to FCPP input.…”

“…The interview topic guide was informed by the aim of the research as well as by the results of the scoping review and survey of access methods previously performed by the authors (Lamb et al, 2023a(Lamb et al, , 2023b. It was developed by discussion among the authors, and there were no patients involved due to time constraints.…”

“…A scoping review found little evidence in the literature regarding how patients access FCPP appointments and established that even studies that mention access contain minimal descriptions of access routes (Lamb et al., 2023a). To address the lack of evidence around how patients access FCPPs, a study was performed surveying FCPPs across the UK about how patients access their care (Lamb et al., 2023b). The findings revealed that the most common way for patients to access FCPP is via booking at reception within a general practice surgery.…”

“…However, alternative ways to access FCPPs were also found. From the findings of the scoping review and survey (Lamb et al., 2023a, 2023b), it was evident that there was a need to explore access to FCPPs from the patients' perspectives.…”