Implementation of a Self-Management Approach for Low Back Pain in a Public Health Care System

Can a structured self-management intervention, the enhanced transtheoretical model intervention (ETMI), for people with chronic low back pain (CLBP), be feasibly implemented in a public health care system, and what patient outcomes are observed?In this cohort study of 128 physiotherapists and 4193 patients, 85.1% of physiotherapists were trained and 64.0% implemented ETMI in 711 patients with CLBP. Compared with usual care, ETMI-guided care was associated with greater improvements in function and fear-avoidance beliefs and required fewer treatment sessions.These findings suggest ETMI has the potential to improve outcomes for people with CLBP in fewer sessions, but its limited reach highlights challenges in large-scale implementation.

Corresponding Author: Ron Feldman, PhD, Ariel University School of Health Sciences, Neli zaks 20, Rosh haain 4840935 (feldmanron5@gmail.com).

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