Any Non-traumatic Musculoskeletal Condition
Conditions
Keywords
Musculoskeletal, Osteoarthritis, Nudge intervention, Behavioural intervention, Patient education, Healthcare utilization, Shared decision making, Reassurance
Brief summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a brief, reassuring pre-visit message affects patients' expectations and planned follow-up care in adults with common musculoskeletal conditions. The main questions it aims to answer are: * Does reading a brief reassurance message before a clinic visit change how interested patients are in additional care, such as follow-up visits, tests, injections, or surgery? * Does the message affect whether patients actually schedule follow-up care after the visit? Researchers will compare participants who receive the pre-visit reassurance message to those who receive usual care to see if the message changes patients' enthusiasm for care or their follow-up decisions. Participants will: 1. Read a short, easy-to-understand message about musculoskeletal symptoms and options for care (for those in the intervention group) 2. Complete a brief questionnaire rating their interest in follow-up visits, tests, injections, or surgery 3. Have their scheduled follow-up care recorded after the clinic visit
Interventions
BEHAVIORALNudge intervention
The intervention involves reading a brief, easy-to-understand message prior to a musculoskeletal clinic visit. The message explains that many musculoskeletal symptoms are common, often related to normal age-related changes, and can improve with simple self-care. It emphasizes that visits, tests, injections, and treatments are often optional, and patients can choose how much care to pursue.
Sponsors
University of Texas at Austin
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
SINGLE (Caregiver)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Adult (18+ years) * English or Spanish language literacy * Seeking musculoskeletal specialty care * Diagnosed with any non-traumatic musculoskeletal condition * New or return patient to clinic
Exclusion criteria
* Cognitive or other impairment precluding completion of a survey on a tablet * Acute traumatic pathophysiology (fracture, dislocation, sprain/strain)
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-visit enthusiasm for additional care | Immediately after intervention | The primary outcome is pre-visit enthusiasm for additional care, measured as participants' self-reported interest in pursuing a return visit, diagnostic tests, physical therapy, injections, or surgery. Participants rate each item on a 0-10 scale, where 0 indicates "not at all interested" and 10 indicates "definitely want it." This outcome is assessed immediately after the intervention (or usual care) and before the clinic visit. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Actual scheduled follow-up care | Immediately following clinic visit | The secondary outcomes are actual scheduled follow-up care after the musculoskeletal clinic visit, including return visits, diagnostic tests, physical therapy, injections, and surgery. These outcomes are recorded as yes/no for each type of care and are collected from the patient's medical record after the visit. |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed