Updated guidance was published in December to support primary and community care practitioners in recognising serious pathology which requires emergency or urgent referral to secondary care in people with new or worsening MSK symptoms. Serious pathology as a cause of MSK conditions is considered rare, but it needs to be managed either as an emergency or as urgent onward referral as directed by local pathways. Any part of the MSK system can be affected.
Emergency conditions are serious pathologies which must be dealt with on the day as an emergency.…
Read more of this article
by Hannah Oladugba, Physiotherapist, ACPT Network
Key reports exploring the role of osteopaths in supporting NHS services for the benefit of patient care, including the results of research into osteopaths as primary care First Contact Practitioners, have been published and are available 
NASS was pleased to work with Dr Helena Marzo-Ortega of Leeds Teaching Hospitals and Simon Whalley from M&F Health to produce a comment piece for The Lancet Rheumatology earlier this month. The article concluded that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in significant disruption for people living with axial SpA (AS) and the healthcare teams providing the vital NHS services they rely on.
The article shines a light on the difficulties that people living with axial SpA (AS) have had accessing vital services, as well as highlighting the innovative steps that healthcare teams have taken to offer people support during the crisis as well as calling for greater collaboration between policy makers and health care providers to safeguard essential care for people with axial SpA (AS).… 
We know that managing chronic pain can be one of the most difficult aspects of primary care consultations for both doctors and patients. The new NICE guidelines, due to be published in January, will potentially have huge implications on the traditional way of practice.
We are delighted to announce that the 
We are also delighted to welcome EQL as associate members. EQL’s 
About a year ago ARMA had a vision for a conference that would bring together stakeholders from across the MSK community to think about how we can work better together to improve the lives of people living with MSK conditions. Earlier this week that vision became a reality in the form of the Working Together conference.
It’s been a year like no other, and while much of the world’s attention has been focused on the disease COVID-19, the needs of people with musculoskeletal disease have not gone away and sadly in many cases the need has grown. We know that thousands of people across the UK have experienced long waits for surgery and cancellations of other medical appointments. The British Orthopaedic Association has continued to focus on the needs of these patients, and Joint Action, its research appeal, is forging ahead with ambitious plans for 2021 to award new grants.… 
Taking place 21-24 September 2021, the 
On Monday 23 November 2020 the campaign to prioritise extra capacity in orthopaedics surgery ‘went’ to Parliament in the form of a roundtable event. The virtual roundtable brought together a wider range of stakeholders including representatives of charities, surgeons, clinicians and industry to make the case in Parliament as to why orthopaedics should be a priority for the NHS over the next few years.