“I felt uncertain about my whole future”—a qualitative investigation of people's experiences of navigating uncertainty when seeking care for their low back pain

Abstract

Abstract Uncertainty pervades low back pain (LBP). This study aimed to explore individuals' experiences of navigating uncertainty when seeking care for their LBP, with a view to better understanding the contexts in which they experience uncertainty and gaining insight into how uncertainty may be better navigated during clinical encounters. We conducted 15 semistructured interviews with people who have experienced LBP. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Analysis produced 4 themes. To reflect the unsettled nature of participants' discussions of navigating uncertainty, themes are framed as questions: (1) What will happen over time?; (2) Can clinicians help me? Are they willing to?; (3) What are clinicians talking about?; and (4) Am I being taken seriously? Participants also discussed how clinicians could better navigate these uncertainties. Suggestions included making time to (actively) listen to, and acknowledge, patients' concerns; asking open-ended questions; being honest about uncertainty; creating management plans and returning to them; challenging assumptions; remaining curious about patients' context; and providing guidance on how to manage LBP rather than simply giving certainty that symptoms will worsen, lessen, or continue. These findings indicate that many of the uncertainties individuals with LBP experience are intertwined with relational aspects of their interactions with clinicians. Clinicians therefore may need to consider these broader and relational aspects of care when navigating uncertainty with people who experience LBP, bringing attention to the importance of drawing from knowledge produced outside of the usual hierarchy of evidence (eg, systematic reviews and randomised controlled trials).