Grantham Joint Aches and Pains Hub: A Report

Over 150 people arrived at the Grantham Meres Leisure centre on Thursday 11 January 2024 to talk about their aches and pains.

The event, the first of its kind to be coordinated by the It's All About People Personalisation Team, was designed to bring together many of the services that support people with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions such as joint aches or arthritis.

Present were representatives from GP surgeries, Grantham and District Hospital, One You Lincolnshire, community physiotherapists, pain management services, Lincolnshire County Council, the charity sector, South Kesteven District Council, Citizens Advice South Lincolnshire, and many more. 

Matt Evans, MSK Personalisation Project Manager:

“The event had two key purposes:

• To provide a one-stop-shop to help people living with joint aches and pains.
• To unite the workforce so that colleagues know what is out there and what can be offered to the people they work with.”

This was certainly achieved, as event visitors were able to engage with a plethora of services, including having informal discussions with physiotherapists, signing-up to weight-loss programmes, joining talks to better understand their pain, and enrolling on leisure activities such as Goodboost and Health Walks.

Some people had received personal invites to attend, as regular services were lifted out of their usual NHS settings and placed into spaces at the event. This included two physiotherapy bays and four wellbeing pods, temporarily created from huge Lego bricks.

Inportantly, the whole event ran without additional budget as partners re-located their usual working practices and activities.

Gemma Wright, Personalised Care Lead at K2 Primary Care Network:

“We invited people to the event that were on a treatment waiting list. We wanted them to become aware of all the fantastic opportunities and services that are available to them in their neighbourhoods. Through collaborative working, we collaborated with a number of organisations that shared our ambition to meet the needs of people living with joint aches and pains.”

Early evidence suggests that people have already signed up to and began attending support groups following the event.

A full event evaluation and its impacts is underway, with learning supporting similar events for other health conditions.

Matt Evans:

“A truly integrated health system makes the most of all of the services and assets we have available to us; NHS, local authority and community-based.”

For more information about this event contact matthew.evans34@nhs.net

Colleagues from across health, community and local authority organisations unite to support people living with aches and pains.