Annals of Family Medicine: Study Finds Group Medical Visits Facilitate Four Types of Social Support for Patients With Chronic Pain

PROVIDENCE, R.I., Oct. 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Chronic pain affects more than one in five adults in the United States and is deeply shaped by social context. Social support is associated with improved outcomes for people with chronic pain, but is an understudied component of biopsychosocial pain care. A new study published in the September/October 2026 issue of Annals of Family Medicine points to group medical visits as a potential model for biopsychosocial chronic pain management, finding they mobilize emotional, appraisal, informational, and instrumental support as core therapeutic processes among primary care patients with chronic pain.

Led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, the study analyzed descriptive and qualitative data from a larger, mixed-methods randomized trial that evaluated group-based pain management in primary care clinics in the San Francisco Health Network. Patients were assigned to group visits consisting of 12 weekly two-hour sessions of clinical care, pain education, mindfulness, gentle movement, and discussion. Groups were co-facilitated by primary care and behavioral health clinicians and a movement and mindfulness instructor. Researchers observed 16 sessions and held two focus groups and 12 interviews among the 26 participating patients.

Patients reported emotional, appraisal, informational, and instrumental social support from participating in the group medical visits. The nonjudgemental space and trust built within the group encouraged emotional support, such as removing shame over late arrivals or absences, and also from naming and discussing grief. Facilitators gave appraisal support by disclosing their own setbacks and peers offered affirmations that encouraged self-compassion. Informational support came from the curriculum and from peers, who traded tips like using frozen water bottles for plantar fasciitis. Instrumental support included peers bringing food to share and facilitators referring participants for counseling and other care.

The authors write that "group medical visits for chronic pain mobilized multiple, interwoven forms of social support as a central driver of patient outcomes, enacted through structured facilitation and peer interaction." Turning to practice, they write that "group medical visits offer a scalable model for expanding access to multimodal, biopsychosocial pain management in primary care. These visits combine billable clinical care with health education, peer support, and nonpharmacologic treatment to improve population health and patient and clinician experiences while reducing the cost of care."

An accompanying podcast with authors Dr. Chao and Jesse Wennik about this study is available on the Annals of Family Medicine website, YouTube, and audio streaming platforms.

Articles Cited:

Social Support in Group Medical Visits for Chronic Pain in Primary Care

Hee Joo Ko; Jhia L. N. Jackson, MS; Ariana Thompson-Lastad, PhD; Jesse Wennik, NP; Pamela Swedlow, MD; and Maria T. Chao, DrPH, MPA

Annals of Family Medicine is an open access, peer-reviewed, indexed research journal that provides a cross-disciplinary forum for new, evidence-based information affecting the primary care disciplines. Launched in May 2003, Annals of Family Medicine is sponsored by six family medical organizations, including the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Board of Family Medicine, the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine, the Association of Departments of Family Medicine, the Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors, and the North American Primary Care Research Group. Annals of Family Medicine is published online six times each year, charges no fee for publication, and contains original research from the clinical, biomedical, social, and health services areas, as well as contributions on methodology and theory, selected reviews, essays, and editorials. Complete editorial content and interactive discussion groups for each published article can be accessed for free on the journal's website, www.AnnFamMed.org.

SOURCE Annals of Family Medicine