ArticleFrontiers in rehabilitation sciences2025
Clinical and engagement efficacy of a virtual musculoskeletal integrated practice unit in health system employees: aggregate and comparative results from two employers.
Article in Frontiers in rehabilitation sciences, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Introduction: Integrated Practice Units are whole-person models of care designed to deliver a comprehensive range of treatment strategies centered around a patient's preferences, values, and needs. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of a virtual IPU (V-IPU) for employees of two large health systems experiencing back, neck or joint pain. Specifically, we evaluated improvements in pain interference, physical health, and user satisfaction/experience. Methods: This was a prospective cohort study with a total of 167 employees from two health systems who were recruited through e-mail outreach and completed a brief health assessment, including patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) for physical, emotional, and pain health. Upon sign-up, employees began a 12-week multidisciplinary program consisting of musculoskeletal (MSK) physician telehealth treatment and oversight, supervised one-to-one physical therapy, registered dietitian counseling, health coaching, and platform to in-person specialty services when clinically appropriate. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) scores for physical health, mental health, and pain interference were assessed at intake, 6-weeks, and 12-weeks after program initiation. Net promoter score (NPS) was measured to evaluate participant experience and satisfaction with the program. Results: The average age was 50.56 years, and a large majority of responders were female (89.2%). There were clinically meaningful improvements for PROMIS measures of physical health, mental health and pain interference (5.6, 4.4 and 6.9 points, respectively). The Net Promoter Score was 85 for engaged individuals. Additionally, the V-IPU was successful in connecting employees to additional surgical-avoiding services offered by the employer and which complemented the digital participation of the V-IPU. Conclusion: The V-IPU improves health outcomes and care coordination for health system employees. These findings support the use of virtual multidisciplinary models to enhance access and outcomes in employer-based health initiatives.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.