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A year ago, Maganbhai Patel was sitting in his living room in Brampton suffering from debilitating, chronic low back pain that was seriously hampering his ability to work and his overall quality of life. Today, the 70 year-old Brampton resident is pain-free and ready to return to work thanks to a referral to the new OHIP-funded Rapid Access Clinics (RACs) for Low Back Pain.
Launched in the fall of 2019 through a local health care partnership, the RACs for Low Back Pain provide people experiencing low back pain with fast access to specially-trained health care providers within four weeks of a referral from their family doctor or nurse practitioner. RACs in this region operate with the leadership of William Osler Health System (Osler) serving Brampton, North Etobicoke, Malton, West Woodbridge, Caledon, Orangeville, Shelburne, Bramalea and surrounding areas, and in partnership with Trillium Health Partners (THP) in Mississauga.
To be eligible, an individual must have been experiencing low back pain and/or low back-related leg pain for at least six weeks or up to 12 months, or be experiencing a new occurrence or worsening pain with the past year.
“I had tried several different treatments like physiotherapy, massage therapy and acupuncture, but the results never lasted,” says Patel, who was physically fit prior to the onset of his low back pain in February 2019. The Brampton resident had just completed a multi-day shift on an oil well in the Atlantic Ocean and suspects the stormy, -30C conditions and freezing rain were a contributing factor.
Given Patel’s age, his family doctor initially believed his back issues were due to arthritis, but the long-time yoga enthusiast wasn’t eager to start on pain killers, so he elected to try some other treatments. When those only provided temporary relief, he returned to see his family doctor who told him about the new RACs for Low Back Pain.
Less than four weeks following his doctor’s referral, Maganbhai was sitting in a clinic with Advanced Practice Provider, Chirayu Desai, who is contracted by Osler and trained through the provincial program, and which includes mentorship by spine surgeons at THP. Desai is among other health professionals, such as chiropractors and physiotherapists, who are trained to assess and manage patients at their own clinics in the community.
Prior to the introduction of the RACs, people living with low back pain could wait months to years to see a specialist for diagnosis and treatment. Considering that low back pain is recurrent and only five percent of people meet the criteria for surgery, the vast majority of people with low back pain can self-manage their pain through prescribed exercises and education.
“The low back pain experienced by the majority of people we assess can be self-managed through personalized treatment plans tailored to their specific needs,” says Desai. “By learning to self-manage their conditions, they can eliminate the frustration and cost that sometimes comes with receiving treatments that only provide short-term relief.”
The comprehensive assessment with the advanced practice provider usually takes about one hour, and includes a thorough medical history and physical examination. A personalized self-management plan is created, specific exercises are prescribed, and education and community resources are provided.
“Chirayu was great,” says Patel. “He explained to me that my back issues were muscle-related and developed a six-week exercise plan for me. He had me go through each exercise with him so I knew how to do them, and gave me handouts to follow when doing the exercises in my home. I did the exercises three times a day for six weeks, and now I’m pain free!”
When necessary, the RACs advanced practice providers can escalate care of patients to an advanced practice lead at THP for further imaging, injections, or surgical triage.
That was the case for Jacynthe DeGuire who found herself in emergency surgery less than a month after first visiting a Low Back Pain RAC, after experiencing a herniated disc.
“The entire process went so quickly from the time I was first assessed in the RACs to my appointment at the hospital, to having an MRI and ending up in emergency surgery. I can’t say enough about how awesome the whole process was,” says DeGuire.
As for Maganbhai, with his back pain issues now behind him, he is looking forward to returning to work and reclaiming the active lifestyle he previously enjoyed.
“These clinics will help hundreds of people like me get back to the things we enjoy most in life. I’m so pleased with this entire experience.”
Learn more about our Rapid Access Clinics for low back pain, as well as hip and knee joint arthritis.
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