Influencing patients' expectations of musculoskeletal pain by physiotherapists

Everyone in the Netherlands experiences musculoskeletal pain, such as back pain or knee pain, at some point in their lives. Physiotherapy is an important treatment for these people, but it does not work well for everyone. It can work better if patients have more positive expectations about their recovery. 

Aim

This study therefore focuses on the effect of communication training to teach physiotherapists how to give their patients more positive expectations about their recovery. 

Approach

A total of 58 physiotherapists and 260 patients with musculoskeletal pain will take part in the study. A draw will determine which physiotherapists will receive communication training during the trial and which will not. If the communication training shows good results, it will be offered to other physiotherapists (and physiotherapy students). Physiotherapy treatments can then bring (even) more health benefits to patients with musculoskeletal pain.