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Our findings
New research from the BCA and the York Health Economics Consortium (YHEC) has found that granting chiropractors the same status as physiotherapists and osteopaths in the NHS could deliver hundreds of thousands of additional musculoskeletal (MSK) appointments per year, slashing current waiting times in the midst of an MSK crisis. The analysis estimates that over 100,000 more patients could be seen with the help of chiropractic care for conditions such as joint, bone and muscular pain. In doing so, YHEC estimate the annual economic benefits to the UK economy would be £400 million, over £1.5 billion across the duration of this Parliament.
Waiting times continue to rise to record levels as, on average, 30 million working days are lost each year due to MSK conditions. At the same time, sickness absences in the workforce have been estimated to be responsible for more than £100 billion of lost productivity in the UK every year, and more than a quarter of workforce sickness absences are relate to MSK conditions.
Chiropractic care is recognised within the World Health Organisation's guidance for treatment of lower back pain, with the profession being recognised as an integral part of the MSK response in many other countries such as the US, Canada and Denmark. Despite this, in the UK chiropractors are not included in the Allied Health Profession (AHP) status list, which includes Physiotherapy and Osteopathy. This means NHS patients are not referred to chiropractic despite research showing this could both improve patient outcomes and speed of care.
Tim Button, President of the British Chiropractic Association said:
“This landmark report not only lays bare the extent of the crisis we currently face in primary care but shows just how vital chiropractic is as a ready to go resource embedded in communities up and down the country. Fully recognising the sector’s contribution to treating MSK conditions quickly and reliably will help thousands of NHS patients off waiting lists, grant the NHS the additional capacity it so desperately needs, and help people get back to work. And in doing so, save the UK economy over £1.5 billion in lost employee working hours over this Parliament.
GP surgeries are needlessly overrun with MSK appointments when our community is ready to help beat the backlogs and get patients back to good health and back to work. We are calling on the Government and NHS to recognise our profession as Allied Health Practitioners and stand ready to work with Government and NHS to support those across the country to receive safe and fast access to treatment.”
The NHS is trying tirelessly to meet demand and yet current community waiting times are, even as a conservative average, 11 weeks. Although waiting time are often rising even further to 24 weeks in many parts of the country.
This not only contributes to a significant backlog for the NHS, but stifling UK productivity. Backlogs continued to worsen due to the pandemic and working habits have changed with more people working from home, meaning more people than ever are seeking treatment. Using the current additional capacity in the chiropractic sector, YHEC research found that 114,424 people could be seen per year. This would mean a value of productivity gain of an estimated £400 million per year, as people are able to return to work quicker.
Chiropractors are qualified and regulated healthcare professionals requiring a minimum four-year Master’s degree and regulated by the independent General Chiropractic Council (GCC) - a statutory body established by, and accountable to, Parliament. The British Chiropractic Association is calling on the Government to recognise the value of the profession and chiropractors as Allied Healthcare Professionals (AHP), so that we can play our part of a coordinated approach to address MSK waiting times.
York Health Economics Associate Director, Nick Hex, said:
“Our Health Economics Report is the most extensive report to our knowledge that dissects whether chiropractors can deliver equivalent treatment to their similar MSK care counterparts, and the economic impact of doing so. We did not find any evidence to suggest chiropractors could not deliver equal results to those currently on the AHP list. Rather, our findings suggest that the benefits to the UK economy could be substantial, capable of reducing the burden on the NHS by over 100,000 appointments every year. Which directly aligns with the Government's healthcare objectives of moving more care into the community.”
The Government’s announcement to end waiting times of longer than a year by March 2025 has faced criticism about its achievability. The UK needs to act now and use the resources already available. Through the spare capacity available in the chiropractic sector, chiropractors could help support this government and NHS colleagues to unlock immediate treatment options already established in communities.