Cognitive Behavioural Skills to Treat Back Pain: The Back Skills Training (BeST) Programme (FutureLearn)

The Back Skills Training (BeST) programme focuses on ‘undoing’ beliefs about low back pain, and provides skills to become more active, despite pain. The programme was developed by experts in psychology, physiotherapy, cognitive-behavioural therapy, and people with long-standing low back pain. According to a rigorous clinical trial, the BeST programme produces long term reductions in people’s pain and disability and is a very cost effective treatment.

Syllabus

Week 1: Introduction and Background to the course

Week 2: Understanding the patients perspective

Week 3: Group sessions 1 and 2 of the BeST Programme

Week 4: Group sessions 2 and 3 of the BeST Programme

Week 5: Group Sessions 4 and 5 of the BeST Programme

Week 6: Group Session 6 and Bringing it all together

Learning on this course

You can take this self-guided course and learn at your own pace. On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

- Apply a cognitive behavioural approach to effectively help people better manage persistent low back pain.

- Reflect on how to implement these techniques in clinical practice.

- Lead a group back skills training (BeST) programme in your clinical setting.

- Demonstrate understanding of a cognitive behavioural approach to managing persistent low back pain.

Who is the course for?

This course is approved by the British Psychological Society for the purposes of Continuing Professional Development for healthcare professionals. It is an unfacilitated course designed for healthcare professionals with a role or interest in managing patients with low back pain (including nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and psychological therapists).

It will also be useful for students training to become healthcare professionals. The Certificate of Achievement for this course would be useful for providing evidence of CPD.