Multidisciplinary team-based management approach for secondary-care patients with severe and persistent low back pain: A mixed-method feasibility trial

BACKGROUND: Persistent and severe low back pain is challenging to treat. Multidisciplinary care with systematic follow-up may be more effective than usual care. However, such a model has yet to be developed and tested.

OBJECTIVE: Our objectives were to develop and test the feasibility of a three-month multidisciplinary intervention with systematic follow-up in a specialized hospital spine center for patients with severe and persistent low back pain.

METHODS: Using the Medical Research Council and National Institute for Health and Care Research framework for the development and testing of complex interventions, we developed a multidisciplinary intervention with systematic follow-up and tested its feasibility, using a-priori-determined outcomes during three months for 24 patients seen at a regional diagnostic spine center unit. As part of the evaluation, we conducted semi-structured interviews with participants and a focus-group interview with clinicians.

RESULTS: Of the 24 patients included, only 17 completed the course of care and provided complete data for feasibility assessment. We failed to reach our a-priori feasibility outcomes, had difficulty with inclusion, and participants did not find the intervention effective or satisfactory.

CONCLUSIONS: The intervention was not feasible as barriers existed on multiple levels (e.g., clinical, administrative, and patient). Excessive study moderations must be made before the intervention is feasible in a randomized trial.