How can a brief intervention contribute to coping with back pain? A focus group study about
participants' experiences
Sammanfattning
Background: Our aim was to explore how individuals who had participated in a brief back and
neck pain intervention perceived connections between the intervention and their subsequent coping.
Methods: Three focus group discussions were conducted with a sample of ten employees aged 20-67
years, who had participated in a brief intervention for back and neck pain, perceived the intervention
as helpful and had returned or remained at work subsequent to the intervention. Participants were
invited to share stories of how the intervention had made a positive difference to their work situation
and everyday life and helped them cope with their complaints. Systematic text condensation was
used for analysis. Results: Analysis revealed several aspects of how the participants considered the
intervention to be helpful. They emphasized the importance of having the information delivered in a
comprehensible way, with the use of practical examples and images of the spine. Discussions
revealed the significance of trusting the lecturers and perceiving them as experts. Understanding
why they felt the pain and that it was not a sign of serious disease changed the participants’
perception of how they could live with the complaints. They told stories of how they had exceeded
their previous limits and dared to undertake activities they previously had avoided due to fear.
Conclusions: Having confidence in the lecturers and seeing them as experts that delivered the
information in a comprehensible way helped participants to cope with their pain and was seen as the
most important aspects of the brief back and neck pain intervention.