Network pain rehabilitation: an integrated interdisciplinary care approach

Eighteen percent of the Dutch adults has chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP). It is expected that this number will increase in the coming years. CMP is associated with perceived disability and limitations in daily functioning, and is one of the main courses for sick leave and work disability. In the Netherlands, the annual medical costs for CMP are approximately 20 billion Euros a year. Despite the high medical costs, patients perceive the care as inadequate because they still experience pain complaints after treatment. Therefore, patients with CMP keep seeking for a solution for their complaints. Solutions for the current barriers in organization of care for patients with CMP are described in the Standard of Care for Chronic Pain in the Netherlands. The Network Pain Rehabilitation Limburg (NPRL) is an implementation of this for the rehabilitation care for CMP. This thesis describes the design, implementation and evaluation of NPRL. The main goal is to evaluate its feasibility and (cost-) effectiveness.