Sally's Story

Our objective is to provide timely and effective treatment, making best use of scarce resources.

Sally is a 39-year old part-time legal secretary. She lives with her partner James. Her parents live in the same small town and she is a part-time carer for her mother, who has suffered a stroke. Her hobby is running. Running is also her main method of exercise and her way of maintaining her "ideal" weight. Sally has recently begun to complain of pain in her knee. She visits her local GP surgery and is referred to the Orthopeadic Screening Service run by Orthopeadic Practitioners (specialist physiotherapists).

The referral is sent electronically and Sally is able to visit a clinic at the new Medical Centre in her town within four weeks.

Her knee pain is assessed using a clinically evaluated scoring system, which indicated a course of physiotherapy is required. She is now running again.

Sally has been given the number for Physio Direct and can contact this service straight away if her knee pain returns. She now feels confident to continue running, which is an important aspect of her life, helping Sally to cope better with her work and home responsibilities.

Local information

Physical activity rates are low across the entire PCT adult population. Locally only about 16% take part in vigorous physical activity and over half are not sufficiently physically active to benefit their health.

Physical activity is important for maintaining mental and physical wellbeing. Lack of physical activity is estimated to cause one third of heartrelated deaths plus a three-fold increase in strokes among middle-aged men.