e-Bulletin July 2021

Towards a global strategy to improve musculoskeletal
health
You may have already heard about the recent release of this G-MUSC commissioned
report and we encourage you to share it widely.
Despite being the world’s leading cause of pain, disability and healthcare expenditure, thisresearch has found that the prevention and management of musculoskeletal health,including conditions such as low back pain, fractures, arthritis, and osteoporosis, isglobally under-prioritised.
The report proposes a blueprint for actions that health systems need to take in all countries
to address this gap.
The blueprint was developed with almost 700 stakeholders from 72 countries, representing
116 organisations involved in musculoskeletal health through a project led out of Curtin
University and University of Sydney, Australia by Professor Andrew Briggs and a team ofinternational researchers* with funding from the Bone and Joint Foundation.
Mapping the current global landscape for the prevention and management ofmusculoskeletal health, identified current gaps, and trends in national health policies andgaining consensus from stakeholders including those with lived experience ofmusculoskeletal conditions, enabled the development of a blueprint to prioritisemusculoskeletal health in eight key areas.
Professor Tony Woolf, Chair of the Bone and Joint Foundation which funded the research,said more than 1.5 billion people live with a musculoskeletal condition, which is 84 percent more than in 1990, and despite many ‘calls to action’ and an ever-increasing ageing
population, health systems continued to under-prioritise these conditions and theirrehabilitation requirements.
“One of the limiting factors to reform efforts is that no global-level strategic response to theburden of disability has been developed – until now, Professor Briggs, Project Lead said.
"This novel data-driven initiative will be critical to guiding global-level work in healthreform”
Addressing musculoskeletal health requires more than just healthcare reform - it requires
inter-ministerial prioritisation and co-operation and collaboration with industry, transport
and the built environment.
“Global-level guidance, such as from the World Health Organization, is needed forcountry-level responses on musculoskeletal health and this blueprint provides thatguidance which countries, including low- and middle-income countries, can then adapt tosuit local needs and priorities” Professor Lyn March from the University of Sydney and GMUSC, said.
“The blueprint is practical and can inform what a global strategic response might look likeand how countries can respond to musculoskeletal health in order to arrest the increasing
global burden of disability and cost.”

The 8 critical areas identified in this framework for health systems reform, included
community education; leadership and governance; health financing models; service
delivery models that support integrated and person-centred care; equitable access tomedicines and technologies; building capacity in the health workforce to deliver the rightcare at the right time; population health surveillance; and research and innovation.
“The work will now be considered by global agencies such as WHO and shared widely
across countries, organisations and disciplines so that musculoskeletal health is integrated
with other health reform initiatives in lifecourse and ageing, rehabilitation, noncommunicable disease, and injury and trauma” said Professor Karsten E. Dreinhöfer,Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Medical Park Berlin Humboldtmühle and G-MUSC.
Professor Deborah Kopansky-Giles, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, theUniversity of Toronto and G-MUSC remarked on the inclusive approach to seeking input forthe blueprint. “The design of the international Delphi project that led to this blueprint wasvery inclusive, enabling MSK stakeholders from low- and medium-income countries aswell as high income countries to provide their perspectives. Input was solicited frompatients, health advocates, clinicians, teachers, policy makers and researchers to ensurethat as many perspectives were captured to better inform the blueprint.

"There was very high level of agreement on prioritized elements across all stakeholders andbodes well for a collaborative approach to future policy development around MSK health,both nationally and internationally.”
Two research papers will be published in Global Health Research and Policy and BMJ
Global Health and the resulting report ‘Towards a global strategy to improvemusculoskeletal health’ has been published on the Global Alliance for Musculoskeletal
Health website.
* The Project Team and Steering Group included: Prof Andrew Briggs (project lead), Dr Carmen Huckel Schneider, ProfHelen Slater, Dr Joanne Jordan, Dr Sarika Parambath, Dr James Young, Dr Saurab Sharma, Prof Deborah Kopansky-Giles,
Swatee Mishrra, Prof Lyn March, Prof Tony Woolf, Prof Kristina Åkesson, Neil Betteridge, Prof Karsten Dreinhöfer, and Dr
Manjul Joshipura

CONTACTS:UNITED KINGDOM - Professor Tony Woolf, anthony.woolf@btopenworld.com
CANADA - Professor Deborah Kopansky-Giles, deborah.kopansky-giles@unityhealth.to
GERMANY - Professor Karsten Dreinhöefer, karsten.dreinhoefer@charite.de
AUSTRALIA - Professor Lyn March, lyn.march@sydney.edu.au;
Professor Andrew Briggs, A.Briggs@curtin.edu.au

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT

Global Alliance for Musculoskeletal HealthUniversity of Sydney, Institute of Bone and Joint Research
Clinical Administration 7C, Royal North Shore Hospital
St Leonards NSW 2065 Australia
Tel: +61 2 9463 1892
Email: gmusc.office@gmail.com
Website: www.gmusc.com
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/@MSKHealthGlobal

The Global Alliance for Musculoskeletal Health works to reduce the burden and cost ofmusculoskeletal conditions to individuals, carers and society worldwide. We value your support andhope you will wish to stay in touch but if you do wish to unsubscribe from future emails please send us

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GMUSC · Clinical Administration 7C · Royal North Shore Hospital · St Leonards, NSW 2065 · Australia