Adult Musculoskeletal Services (MSK)

Havering, Barking and Dagenham

Our physiotherapy service provides outpatient physiotherapy for adults (from age 16) with musculoskeletal conditions living in the areas of Havering as well as Barking and Dagenham.

This includes treatment for common problems such as low back pain, sprains and strains. The team comprises of administrators, exercise therapists, physiotherapists who have a range of experience working within the NHS. We also support student physiotherapists on clinical placements with direct supervision from a senior clinician.

As well as individual treatments, we have a gym and offer group exercise and advice sessions. 

What is MSK?

Musculoskeletal (MSK) physiotherapists provide advice and treatment for a wide range of conditions that affect joints, muscles, ligaments, tendons and nerves.

Physiotherapy is more than just exercises. Physiotherapists are specialists in providing rehabilitation for all MSK conditions. We help people understand the cause of their problem, how best to manage their own condition and how to prevent it recurring. 

Our aim is to provide the best care possible according to each patient’s needs.

The MSK Team

We have a wide range of highly skilled staff that includes physiotherapists,   extended scope musculoskeletal practitioners (ESP), exercise therapists, and administrative support staff.

Physiotherapists

All our physiotherapists are highly-trained, HCPC registered, with a range of specialist skills and experience. They will work with you to understand who you are, your needs and goals, and help you to live your life to the full the way you want to. They work to reduce pain and restore function and movement.

If needed our therapists can refer you on to see an Extended Scope Practitioner (ESP’s).

We support the education of physiotherapy students. You may be treated by a student; but they are always closely supervised by a qualified physiotherapist.

Extended Scope Physiotherapists (ESP’s)

We have extended scope physiotherapists (ESP’s) working in our team and they have undergone further training in musculoskeletal medicine which enables them to extend their practice. They are able to offer advanced assessments, treatment and advice with the ability to request further investigations such as x –rays, MRI, ultrasound scans and blood test if appropriate for the management of your condition.  Our ESP’s are trained to administer steroid injections for the soft tissue and joints where appropriate.

Exercises Therapist 

Our Exercises Therapists are qualified professionals who will support you with your rehabilitation programme to help you achieve your goals. They will help guide in education and self management of your condition. They offer group and individual sessions.

Admin Team

Our Admin team ensure the smooth running of our service . They help to manage our appointments system and are the first point of contact to our service via the telephone and email .

MSK Your Appointment

What we offer

We offer video and telephone consultations and face to face consultations.

Treatment is carried out with individuals or in groups, depending on what the patient and the physiotherapist feel is most appropriate.

We currently provide:

A pain education class.

Gym based exercises class, patients are prescribed an individual exercise programme by their therapist and attend regular sessions to support their rehabilitation.

Individual physiotherapy or exercise therapy sessions via video , telephone or in clinic.

Your appointment /what to expect

Your initial assessment will at first be completed via a telephone consultation that should take around 25-30 minutes to complete. This is where we will ask you questions and give you an opportunity to explain how your symptoms started and about your pain to see how we can help you manage this.  

Once your assessment has been completed, your physiotherapist will explain their findings and work with you to establish your goals and treatment plan. Your physiotherapist will usually prescribe an exercise programme for you to follow at home, this is important for your recovery.

Thereafter the clinician will decide with you whether you will have a video consultation, telephone consultation or if you will require a face to face appointment.  MCATS and SMAS initial appointments are usually face to face and last around 20-40 minutes. 

We will ask for your consent before completing our assessment and you have the right to decline any part of the assessment.

MCATS and SMAS may refer for further investigations, provide or refer for injections, make referrals to consultants, refer for physiotherapy. 

Face to face appointments

To be able to assess you,  it may be necessary to ask you to remove the area of clothing which is being assessed. Therefore you might feel more comfortable if you wear or bring with you a vest top or shorts.

If you require an interpreter we are able to organise this for you, please let us know. If you would feel more comfortable you may request a male or female clinician.

Video appointments

If you have been invited to join a video consultation this will be via our Attend Anywhere service and you will be provided with details of how to access this via letter or email.

To be able to assess you it may be necessary to ask you to remove the area of clothing which is being assessed. Therefore you might feel more comfortable if you wear or bring with you a vest top or shorts.

If you require an interpreter we are able to organise this for you, please let us know. If you would feel more comfortable you may request a male or female clinician.

Cancelled & Missed appointments

If you are unable to attend your physiotherapy appointment please advise us a minimum of 24 hours before your appointment.

We can appreciate that forgetting an appointment is possible, if this happens you will need to contact us within 24 hours to reschedule.

If you have missed your appointment without alerting the department, we will assume you no longer need physiotherapy and you will be discharged from our service.

If you are unable to make your appointment for any reason, please get in touch

Additional exclusions for MCATS and SMAS

Patients whose condition is of non-musculoskeletal origin.

Patients who require surgery with radiological evidence of pathology.

Patients who require surgery for conditions such as Dupuytren’s contracture, excision of lumps/cysts.

Patients who have seen a consultant for same condition for the same problem in the past 12 months.