The WAIT-less trial is a prospectively registered randomized controlled trial aimed at reducing waiting times for people with musculoskeletal pain referred to public hospital outpatient physiotherapy clinics.

 

Many Australians seeking care for musculoskeletal pain do not have private health insurance and join increasingly long waiting lists for clinic-based physiotherapy in public hospitals. Long waiting times of up to 12 months for these people likely delay recovery and lead some to develop persistent disabling symptoms that are costly and complex to manage.

 

A potential solution to reduce treatment waiting times is a model of care that can identify patients with simple musculoskeletal problems that can be managed with less resources (e.g. brief telephone appointments, App-based home exercise programs), thereby freeing-up clinic-based resources for patients with more complex presentations.

 

The WAIT-less trial involves testing a new physiotherapist-led triage and treatment service in public hospital outpatient physiotherapy clinics in NSW, Australia. The new service can identify patients with simple musculoskeletal problems that can be managed with less resources (e.g. brief telephone appointments, App-based home exercise programs), thereby freeing-up clinic-based resources for patients with more complex presentations.

 

368 participants (184 per arm) will be recruited from six public hospitals located in NSW Australia randomised 1:1 to the physiotherapist-led triage and treatment service or usual in-person physiotherapy. Physical function (Patient Specific Functional Scale) at 6 months post-randomisation and waiting time (time from randomisation to treatment) are co-primary outcomes. Secondary outcomes include other patient outcomes (e.g. pain), health resource use, adverse events, process measures (e.g. adherence) and costs.

 

The findings of this novel trial will establish whether a new triage and treatment service in outpatient physiotherapy clinics can help overcome a key health service delivery challenge in the management of musculoskeletal pain in Australia. Link to trial registration:

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This trial has been funded by a Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Grant (2022985)

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For more information, please contact Joshua Zadro on joshua.zadro@sydney.edu.au 

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Effectiveness of a physiotherapist-led triage and treatment service on WAITing time for adults with musculoskeletal pain referred to Australian public hospital physiotherapy clinics: a protocol for the WAIT-less trial | BMJ Open