Unmet needs
It is difficult to quantify the exact level of MSK need. There appears to be a gap between the estimate of over 63,000 residents living with MSK conditions with the numbers of residents accessing healthcare (see section 8). This suggests that some people are either not seeking help and self-managing their condition, or have their needs met by accessing healthcare from a private provider e.g. physiotherapists and osteopaths (data is not readily available regarding this). This potential underrepresentation means that some conditions are hidden, and/or needs are unmet.
It is possible that there is some unmet need because of people not understanding what support is available, rather than not being able to access it. For example, residents may not self-refer to NTIMS (see below) or workplace schemes if they are unaware of their existence. Also, there is unmet need in relation to several MSK risk factors e.g., only small numbers of people living with excess weight currently access weight management services or physical activity programmes.