Abstract

The perceived health needs of 50 chronic low back pain patients were explored within an interview procedure. Patients described symptom and treatment histories, the problems they encountered living with back pain and their severity. Problems as goals for recovery were prioritized. The last two tasks were aided by the use of a Problem Board. Interviews were analysed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Results indicated that the use of this patient-centred procedure could be helpful in outlining individual concerns, translatable into recovery goals for intervention, regardless of concurrent medical treatment. Implications of this approach for individual needs assessment in chronic conditions and for planning service development are discussed.