What is SIMS Sunderland? 

The Sunderland Integrated Musculoskeletal Service (SIMS Sunderland) is a Musculoskeletal service commissioned by Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group (Sunderland General Practitioners).  

The service has been provided by Sunderland and South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trust since 1st October 2015 to offer specialist and comprehensive assessment, treatment and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal conditions to patients of Sunderland. 

Over 30,000 patients from Sunderland are referred to the service for a wide range of musculoskeletal conditions per year.

Which Patients can be referred to SIMS? 

Patients with any non-emergency, joint, tendon, muscle and ligament problems can be referred by their Sunderland  GP’s  for further assessment, investigation and treatment.   

Who are SIMS? 

SIMS is a true multidisciplinary team consisting of highly experienced clinician’s: 

• Consultant in Sports and Exercise Medicine 
• General Practitioners with a Specialist Interest in MSK care (GPSI’s) – GP’s with postgraduate qualifications in MSK care. 
• Extended Scope Physiotherapists – Senior physiotherapists with extended skills including imaging and injection therapy 
• Specialist MSK Physiotherapists 
• Technical Instructor- To support physiotherapy care in providing exercise guidance 
• MSK Administration Staff

What can we offer patients? 

Based upon the information made available to us from a patients GP we will arrange an appointment with the most appropriate member of our team or even  of another department to gain you access to the input you need as quickly as possible. 

We work across a number of sites within the area and a range of appointment dates and times, including evenings and Saturdays, will be offered by our admin staff.

Our clinicians are specialists in musculoskeletal care and each patient will be offered a full assessment followed by a treatment plan specific for their problem. This may include a wide range of treatments available physiotherapy, strengthening exercises programs, condition specific exercise classes, Pain management sessions, injection therapy, ultrasound guided injection treatment and investigations such as x-rays, MRI and ultrasound scans can be organised as required to manage each individual’s problem. 

Many of our staff have extensive experience of working within International and Professional Sport ranging from football and rugby to cricket and horseracing.

We provide our services in line with recognised guidance and standards such as that advised by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).