MSKPN Summer newsletter

Contents

Chairs welcome
Networking events
Leadership Programme
PMI update
Quality update
Blog
Industry and Partners update
Webinar summaries and upcoming
MSKPN Rewards reminder
News

1. Chair’s welcome – Simon Devane

Welcome to our summer newsletter. In this edition, we’re sharing the latest updates from our industry work, insights from partner discussions, highlights from recent webinars and progress on the initiatives we’re taking forward.

As we approach the half year mark, it’s a good time to review the year-to-date and reflect on how we have supported our membership in what has largely been a buoyant market.

The private healthcare sector continues to see strong demand for services, with outpatient and diagnostics out performing in-hospital care. There has been strong regional growth year-on-year, with London and England slowing slightly compared to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. According to Healthcode who processed 98% of PMI invoices during January-April, physiotherapy and MSK made up the biggest proportion by volume – underlining strong year-on-year performance, which hopefully you are all benefiting from.

We held our first regional events in Manchester and Birmingham. It was a great opportunity to engage with existing members in these areas and to meet and speak with prospective members about how MSKPN could support them and their businesses.

As Steven Berkman says “Running a private MSK clinic can feel lonely – so connecting with owners who get it is essential. That’s exactly what our events delivered. A room of clinic owners who understand the reality of building a private practice – the ambition, the pressure and the challenges that come with growth and are happy to support others.”

Thank you Physiquipe and Eureka for hosting and supporting these events. We will be hosting two more networking events in London, details below.

2. Networking events

25 June and 10 Sept – from 18.30 onwards

Duke of Sussex, 23 Baylis Road, Waterloo, London, SE1 7AY

Always popular, our networking events are a great opportunity to meet up with fellow members, the MSKPN board and wider colleagues to discuss the issues that matter most.

 We are inviting a representative from the industry to give us an overview of what’s happening across the wider sector.

Please sign up here:

MSKPN Networking Event Tickets, Thursday 25 June  •  6:30 PM – 11 PM | Eventbrite

MSKPN Networking event Tickets, Thursday 10 September  •  6:30 PM – 11 PM | Eventbrite

3. Leadership programme

MSKPN Leadership Programme Sept-Dec 2026

 Stronger leaders, stronger teams, stronger businesses

 We are delighted to invite our members to sign up for our returning innovative and unique leadership programme tailored for MSK professionals and leaders. 

This course is designed for:

✅ Clinic owners

✅ Future clinic leaders / managers

✅ Practice managers / Reception team leads

Not a lecture-based course, but 4 full interactive days of leadership workshops to help you:

Lead yourself – build confidence, clarity and self awareness

Empower your team – create a culture of trust and performance

Influence and communicate – communicate clearly and inspire action

Grow your business – develop strategy and drive sustainable growth

Any questions please contact Steven Berkman [email protected]

4. PMI update (confidential)

AXA

MSKPN met with AXA’s head of audit at the end of April to discuss the issues with practices being struck off due to higher than average sessions per patient. Also on the agenda were follow-up rates, fee increases and auditing.

Summary:

No automatic fee uplifts, although we would encourage you to speak to AXA directly if you feel you are due a review

Preference is to use Healthcode as clinics will get paid more quickly

The reconciliation of remittances is expected to improve

They will be introducing a payment support service whereby the process for contacting AXA will be more responsive

They will question if a clinic has a FU ration > 7 sessions, but won’t de-list without discussion

They are trying to dampen the message about patients having as many sessions as they want

BUPA

MSKPN met with BUPA in May. BUPA are reviewing internally, but they will share a summary pack with MSKPN / PhysioFirst once their internal discussions have concluded with recommendations and next steps.

Main highlights were:

27% response rate to their recent survey

667 clinics in total responded

450 left comments

50% of comments related to fees

Order of fee comments: 1. Domiciliary, 2. MSK

Other comments around packaging of shockwave and admin friction for requesting more treatment

Announcement on shockwave soon

5. Quality update

Read Lucy’s short report which shows MSKPN maintains exceptional quality results for musculoskeletal physiotherapy across all age groups for the twelve months April 2025 – 2026.

This data, looking at three thousand patients before physiotherapy intervention, shows that our clients are coming to see us with significant functional difficulties (average PSFS 4.35) and improve by up to 70%.

See link here: https://www.mskpn.co.uk/our-work/mskpn-maintains-exceptional-quality-results-for-musculoskeletal-physiotherapy/

Any questions, please ask Dr Lucy Goldby, MSKPN Quality Lead and Director at Balance Performance Physiotherapy – [email protected]

6. Blog

Crouch Physio: members showcase

Lewis Crouch, Specialist MSK Physiotherapist and Clinical Director of Crouch Physio, discusses how needing physio as a child shaped his career, and how MSKPN is giving him the tools to grow. “It’s amazing to have access to a network of incredible professionals, many of whom are in the roles I aspire to reach in a few years.”

Read the blog: https://www.mskpn.co.uk/our-work/crouch-physio-members-showcase/

Why the MSK profession needs to stop racing to the bottom

MSKPN’s first regional event in Manchester brought MSK practices together for an open and lively discussion. Here, Andy Thomas Physiquipe shares his reflections and key takeaways.

Read the blog: https://www.mskpn.co.uk/our-work/mskpn-guest-blog-andy-thomas-physiquipe/

Kinetico: members showcase

Claire Nesler and Yoni Wehbe, Co-Founders and Co-CEOs of Kinetico Health discuss their reasons for signing up as members of MSKPN and their ambitious growth plans. After starting their careers in investment banking and private equity – environments defined by short-term investment cycles – they wanted to build something entrepreneurial and enduring.

Read the blog: https://www.mskpn.co.uk/our-work/kinetico-members-showcase/

7. Strategic Partnerships

IHPN (Independent Healthcare Provider Network) – Quarterly meetings with David Hare (CEO) and members of his team, who provide valuable insight into the wider private sector, including key NHS and political updates.

Physio First – We continue to develop a good collaborative working relationship with the Chair, Katie Knapton, we are now meeting the PMIs in a joint meeting with the aim of having a more coherent sector voice.

CSP – There continues to be a concerted effort to push the CSP to improve its representation of the private and independent sector – the CSP is currently looking into the ‘cost’ of delivering safe, good quality physiotherapy which could provide a useful benchmark for the sector.

8. Webinars

Here’s a reminder of our webinars over the last 5 months:

2026	Topic
28 Jan	Growing a Healthy Business – Scale, Sell, or Stay Small?? Our most popular to date. Three business owners gave their honest views on their growth journey, the challenges they have overcome, the reasons for growth, what tends to break first, key limitations and preparation for exit. “Key limitations for growth – Probably been me. I think to grow you have to relinquish a certain level of control and empower other people.” Cam “Do not employ clones of yourself. Employ people in your team that can do things you can’t do yourself.” Tash “On acquisition – be very clear what you are buying – clinicians, premises, great patient list. Do not underestimate cultural integration.” Simon Recording Link
25 Mar	PMI Feedback session
15 Apr	IT/cyber security Q&A chaired by Cam Tudor Top tips The biggest weakness to any small business is email Train your staff not to trust WhatsApp Be very clear about what you need from third party IT provision Conduct an annual IT audit, as systems and support status can change rapidly Consider running a phishing simulation to test and strengthen your organisation’s resilience A member got caught out by scam when the landlord had been hacked and changed their bank account for rent. Be fastidious about every email.
20 May	Recruitment and staff engagement – The good, the bad and the ugly! Host Karen Young was joined by Claire Small, Steven Berkman and Jason Dodds who shared their real-life experiences. Lucy Goldby also shared information around her internship programme. I’ve made the mistake of recruiting for what we need today, rather than for what we may need in 18 months. We have a finder’s fee for team members. We believe in growing our own and run a graduate training programme I’d highly recommend having visa sponsorship status. Our biggest success is using Linked In. We are constantly trying to recruit and push things out there We hold 3 interviews – a screening call, interview with clinical leads and then a presentation where they set out what they will do for us See summary and recording Staff recruitment webinar – The good, the bad and the ugly! – MSK Partners Network

Here’s our upcoming schedule 2026 – save the dates (12.00-13.00)

1 Jul	Panel discussion – Changing systems, from practice management, billing, patient outcomes, AI and phones – key pain points reflections
2 Sep	AI – tools for efficiency with guest speaker
14 Oct	Diversifying revenue streams
25 Nov	PMI feedback session

9. MSKPN Rewards

Have you taken advantage of the MSKPN Rewards yet – discounts from marketing agencies, product suppliers or business mentors and more.

See them all here

10.News

27.5.26 Healthwatch article: NHS physiotherapy: what people are telling us

Five key themes in people’s feedback

Long waits to access care are causing frustration and harm

Digital care is becoming more common – and sometimes replacing ‘hands‑on’ support

Confusing referral pathways are creating delays

People with complex needs are not always well supported

Positive experiences show what good physiotherapy looks like

See the article here https://www.healthwatch.co.uk/blog/2026-05-27/nhs-physiotherapy-what-people-are-telling-us

As ever, any feedback or questions, please let us know at [email protected]  

Best wishes

From Simon, Natasha, Karen, Steven, Cam, Ali and Janet