At Len Valley Practice we use First Contact Practitioners (FCPs) for our Physiotherapy.

What are MSK FCPs?

Health Education England (HEE) and NHS England (NHSE) agree that FCP roles require advanced level skills to manage individuals with undifferentiated diagnoses at the start of the pathway recognising the uncertainty and potential complexity of patients. Where necessary, FCPs can refer to the GP (and vice versa).

They are highly skilled MSK Practitioners who assess and diagnose (including screening for serious pathology) and have the skills, expertise and competence to:

• Directly access pathological and radiological diagnostics, interpret and act upon the results.
• Utilise the same referral pathways as GPs to secondary care
• Refer on for treatment, e.g. Physiotherapy
• Educate and share their expertise in the primary care team
• Advise on medication optimisation
• Advise on the risks and benefits of management options including surgical interventions
• Administer joint / soft tissue injections (if qualified).
• Discuss fitness for work, healthy lifestyle choices
• Give information on self-care and enable and support behaviour change
• Meet the competencies in the  musculoskeletal core capabilities framework