The British Chiropractic Association held a roundtable at Westminster, London, in April 2024 as part of Chiropractic Awareness Week and the BCA’s “Celebration of Chiropractic”. The event marked a momentous occasion as it was the first time in 30 years the profession hosted a roundtable at the House of Lords, Westminster, London. The purpose of which was to advance the BCA’s member-driven agenda to make chiropractic more integral to UK healthcare.
The United Kingdom, as with many developed and developing nations, is grappling with a rapidly escalating musculoskeletal (MSK) health crisis, significantly straining the National Health Service (NHS) and impairing workforce productivity. This pressing issue has drawn broad consensus on the necessity for immediate and effective intervention. The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) reported that in 2022/23, musculoskeletal disorders were responsible for 6.6 million lost workdays due to work-related ill health, ranking as the second highest cause of absenteeism after ‘stress, depression, or anxiety’.
The Government has acknowledged the severity of this crisis. Initiatives, such as additional funding for MSK hubs and the inclusion of MSK disorders as one of the six major health conditions in the Major Conditions Strategy, are steps in the right direction. Despite these efforts, waiting times for treatment continue to lengthen, and the complexity of MSK conditions faced by patients grows. Further innovation and collaborative efforts are essential to address this escalating issue effectively.
The British Chiropractic Association (BCA) is the largest and oldest professional association in the UK, representing nearly 2000 regulated professional chiropractors. Many patients are turning to Chiropractors as their first point of contact for MSK treatment due to difficulties in securing NHS appointments, particularly since the Covid-19 pandemic. However, Chiropractic is not yet fully leveraged in the national effort to combat the MSK crisis and there is a lack of a coherent strategy to integrate the profession into the broader healthcare system, thereby alleviating the burden on public sector MSK services.
This roundtable aimed to forge a unified approach, encouraging innovation and collaboration across sectors moving forward. Among the guests were prominent stakeholders including MPs, Ex Ministers for Sport, Regulators, Royal Colleges, the Secretary General and nationally renowned musculoskeletal experts including Ex Minister for Sport, Richard Caborn, Past ARMA Chair Anthony Woolf, MP Rt Hon Caroline Noakes, MP George Freeman, The AHP Research Chair Dawn Cairnes as well as Richard Brown, Sec-Gen WFC, Nick Jones, CEO GCC & Mark Gurden RCC representing the profession.
By bringing together diverse stakeholders the goal is to develop strategies that effectively mobilise chiropractors within the healthcare system. This could enhance access to MSK treatment, reduce NHS waiting times, and ultimately improve patient outcomes.