In the foreword for Pain: A Textbook for Therapists, Patrick Wall writes

I am convinced that physiotherapy and occupational therapy are sleeping giants [in the treatment of pain].

Wall saw persistent pain and disability as a giant problem that required a giant solution. He could not have been more right. In the United States, pain and disability’s total financial cost ranges between 560 and 635 billion dollars. Despite the public awareness for things like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, total financial costs for pain and disability nearly exceed all three combined. For context, heart disease costs 309 billion annually, cancer comes in at 243 billion and diabetes is about 188 billion. A large portion of the cost of pain and disability comes in the form of hours and days of work missed as well as the medical costs. As the burden of pain and disability continues to grow, so does the body of literature showcasing our profession’s ability to provide a safe, low cost and effective healthcare provider for those in pain.