In-house physiotherapy (Service decommissioned from end of September 2024)

Please note that this service will no longer be commissioned from 30th September 2024. We will not be able to make appointments for any new patients from 30th August 2024. Patients will still be able to self-refer to Ascenti for physiotherapy services. Go to https://stmaryshealthcentre.co.uk/physiotherapy-service-self-referral/ for further information

Phsiotherapy in general practice

Musculoskeletal (MSK) health issues are the most common cause of repeat GP appointments and account for around 1 in 5 of all GP appointments. Most of them can be dealt with effectively by a physiotherapist without any need to see the GP

MSK is the second largest cause of sickness absence; speeding up access to a physio will reduce this. The government is now actively looking into physios issuing fit notes across the UK – which would further reduce demand for GP appointments

Research shows physiotherapists are the most expert professional group regarding musculoskeletal issues with the exception of orthopaedic consultants. They have the same high safety record as GPs – and are trained to spot and act on red flags.

They are autonomous, regulated practitioners, holding their own professional liability and don’t require supervision or delegation from medical colleagues or others.

To enhance the services we offer to our patients we have been piloting an in-house physiotherapy service with our experienced Physio, Damian Fishwick since August 2022.

Damian has been working with patients to give advice on self-managing various musculoskeletal problems and he can also refer on to other services as appropriate.

However, due to the popularity of this service and the increasing waiting times, we have now had to implement the following restrictions on appointments;

• In-house physio appointments will be limited to no more than 3 appointments per patient in any 6 month period.
• Patients are advised there will be a minimum 6-month period after they are discharged from the service or referred for ongoing management before they will be able to access our in-house service again
• Since August 2022 we have had 127 “did not attend” (DNA’s) out of a total of 1603 appointments provided by Damian, which is an eye-watering 7.9% of all his appointments. Unfortunately, going forward this means that we have had to adopt a zero-tolerance approach to patients who fail to attend.

Therefore, from 12th June 2023 if a patient does not attend (DNA) a physio appointment without cancelling giving 24 hours notice, they will be immediately discharged from the service and become ineligible for any further in-house physio appointments for 6 months.

If you have a new or ongoing musculoskeletal issue which you are not currently receiving care for, please contact our care navigation team on 01772 970079 to enquire about appointment availability.