MCAT Service

We can assess and treat a range of conditions, including: 

• back pain
• neck pain 
• back and leg pain — sciatica and other conditions
• neck and arm pain
• soft tissue injury
• joint osteoarthritis
• tendon-related conditions
• foot conditions
• carpal tunnel syndrome
• ongoing pain post-injury that is not settling with routine management such as medication, physiotherapy, optimised self-management.

Our team includes specialists in:

• Spinal conditions
• Joint conditions
• Sports injuries
• Joint and soft tissue conditions
• Complex pain conditions
• Musculoskeletal injection therapy 

Musculoskeletal physiotherapy involves the assessment, treatment and management of conditions that affect muscles, bones, joints, ligaments, tendons, and related structures.

This may take the form of assessment and diagnosis, advice on managing your condition, exercise-based treatment, manual therapy, acupuncture, class-based exercises, hydrotherapy.

Management may include a referral for further investigations such as X-rays, scans or blood tests. Treatment may include advice on improving self-management or steroid or local anaesthetic injections.  

If necessary, we may refer you to other services for treatment, such as outpatient physiotherapy, orthopaedics, rheumatology, pain team, the Centre for Active Lifestyle Management (CALM) service, neurology or neurosurgery.

If you live in Lewisham borough, ask your GP to refer you to our service.

• Residents with a Lewisham GP will be referred to the Lewisham MCAT Service at University Hospital Lewisham or the Waldron Health Centre in New Cross.
• Residents with a Greenwich or Bexley GP will be referred to the local Greenwich or Bexley MCAT service.

Once your referral has been accepted by us, we will book an appointment for you to see us in person. You will usually only need one appointment with MCATS to get you on the right path.

We may give you advice, joint or soft tissue injections, further investigations to help us accurately diagnose your condition or refer you to other services for further management.

If necessary, we will book follow-up appointments with you. These may be in person or by telephone.

Rescheduling or cancelling an appointment

First appointments

Call the Outpatients team on 020 8333 3216 or email LH.Appointments@nhs.net to cancel or reschedule your first appointment.  

Follow-up appointments

Contact the MSK team on 020 3192 6869, 020 8333 3000 ext. 48234 or email LH.MSK@nhs.net to cancel or reschedule your follow-up appointment.

There are plenty of resources online to help you self-manage your condition whilst you wait for your appointment with us:

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy

• Conditions
• Managing your bone, joint or muscle pain 
• Rehabilitation exercises
• I want to feel stronger
  
  

Versus Arthritis

• A future free from arthritis
• Let's Move with Leon: a holistic full body program for improving strength, flexibility and cardiovascular fitness  
  
  

Mental health support

Lewisham Talking Therapies: support and resources if you are feeling low, anxious or stressed

Preparing for your appointment

What to wear: please wear comfortable, loose clothing that will enables our clinicians to fully assess the area of concern.  You may be asked to remove some clothing to allow for a thorough assessment of your condition.  

What you should bring: please bring a change of clothing, if necessary. If you have a leg condition, bring along a pair of shorts to wear, or if you have a spine or arm condition, please bring a vest, sports bra or t-shirt.

You will be able to change in privacy during the appointment. Please also bring with you a list of medications that you are currently taking.

If you need support during your appointment: you may bring a relative, carer, friend or other chaperone if needed. You can also request an interpreter if you need one.

During your appointment

You will meet with one of our Advance Practice MSK clinicians. This may take up to between 20 and 40 minutes, and follow-up appointments may take up to 20 minutes.

The clinician will:

• Introduce themselves and ensure that you are comfortable and are aware of what the session will include.
• Take a full history of your condition and complete a thorough physical examination.
• Clearly explain the cause of your symptoms (diagnosis) and the expected outcome of your condition (prognosis) based on their findings during your assessment, clinical guidelines, available research, and clinical experience), when possible.
• Make any necessary referrals for tests, treatment options such as steroid or local anaesthetic injections which can sometimes be carried out on the day or may need to be done in another follow-up appointment.
• Discuss all potential management options and, using a shared decision-making approach, agree on the next steps of management   

During your appointment, the clinician will let you know if you need to be referred to another service for better management of your condition.

We may also need to refer you for some tests, including:

• X-rays
• Scans – an MRI scan, ultrasound or CT scan
• Blood tests
• Nerve conduction studies (NCS) or electromyograph studies (EMG) 

After your appointment, we will send a letter to you and your GP with details of your assessment. We may arrange a follow-up appointment if needed.

If you have any questions about our service or your condition, please email us at LH.MSK@nhs.net. 

If you cannot attend your appointment, please let us know as soon as you are able to.

Cancelling your first appointment

Call the Outpatients team on 020 8333 3216 or email  LH.Appointments@nhs.net to cancel or reschedule your first appointment.  

Cancelling a follow-up appointment

Contact the MSK team on 020 3192 6869, 020 8333 3000 ext. 48234 or email LH.MSK@nhs.net to cancel or reschedule your follow-up appointment.