PIP - MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM

Hi to all,

On a PIP PA4 report - page 9 - (MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM)

The assessor writes bla bla bla ........ he claimant was in too much pain.

The MSK was performed with Sub-optimal effort.

Could someone please translate to me in simple English terms, what it actual means?

As in regards to the PIP report.


Kind regards

Hello Mrfibro.......(!)

According to the dictionary, 'sub-optimal' means less than perfect.Given that you were in so much pain, then, it probably means that your assessor was not as thorough as s/he would otherwise have been in carrying out the required tests.

What that will mean in terms of the outcome of your assessment depends on how the decision maker 'reads ' the assessors report. Hopefully he will err on the side of caution! Let us know how you get on and if necessary we will be able to help you take any further steps in your claim. Good luck in the meantime

Hi Shelam,

Thanks for your reply,

I had the assessment a while back and have only recently got the PIP PA4 report back. So right now I'm trying to work through the report for irregularities/discrepencies etc.

And I couldn't translate the --- MSK was performed with sub optimal (in normal English terms.)



extract from the pip assessors report....

not able to crouch or bend down, not able to bend knees and stand up because of severe pain. not able to balance on right foot and raise left foot off the floor due to pain. + the reverse because too painful.

the claimant was in severe pain it was too painful.

The MSK was performed with sub-optimal effort.


Shelam is the assessor admitting that i'm in pain ?

because in the report the assessor states quite clearly that I was not.?

surely in the functional test of the assessment, the assessor writes in the pip pa4 report that I am in severe pain ?


I cant bend raise legs etc bla bla bla, then that's an admittance I'm in pain and where indicated in the report states ...mrfibro wasn't in pain bla bla bla. means the assessor has made errors.

And the DM has gone along with this / or these errors and failed to understood the functionality test of the assessment stage?


your views would be appreciated, as my closing date for my MR is about 9 days away.

kind regards

Hi Gordon,

to answer your reply.. is yes I wasn't able to complete 99 % of the functional test at the assessment due to severe pain and discomfort.

I could have refused the functional test, and gave her my reasons why I wasn't going to carry this out!

but I wanted her to get a true reflection on my disabilities, so I agreed to try to do as much as I could.


kind regards






kind regards

I'm sorry if this maybe a repeat,

But I'm still not quite sure about the term... THE MSK WAS PERFORMED WITH SUB-OPTIMAL EFFORT.

my previous post was about that I wanted to know if this was an admittance in the assessors PIP report.

Cleary stating that she observed me doing the functional test (physical medical part of the assessment)

in pain ?

so stating .........he performed the MSK with sub-optimal effort, is the assessor admitting to the fact that she observed me being in severe pain?

please see below some of the report.......




Tipping head showed a restricted range of movement because of neck pain.

Not able to turn neck and body to look behind to the left or right because of neck, shoulder and back pain.

Not able to touch toes in a sitting position because of back and neck pain.

Not able to flex at all from the waist whilst standing.

Not able to put left hand and right hand behind back because it hurts neck and shoulders.

Not able to stand on tip toes because everything was pulling and it was too painful.

Not able to crouch down, bend knees and stand up because it was too painful and pulling in his legs.

Not able to stand and balance on left foot and raise right foot of the floor.

Not able to stand and balance on right foot and raise left foot off the floor. – He was in too much pain.

The MSK was performed with sub-optimal effort.

You see the assessor states in my report, that during the assessment I wasn't in pain. but the MSK and her written observations in the report state in black and white that I was.

so can I take it that I was in pain ?

As this is a very important factor I will have to indicate when I write into the DWP as in regards to my MR.

And obviously it will be used in my Appeal at the tribunal.

I am finding it difficult for an assessor to say that he didn't look as though he was in any pain whilst being helped out of a chair.

Then in the next breath clearly state in the report that he has all of these functional limitations which cause him severe pain.


I thank you for your reading


so is it a yes MSK means I was / or I am in pain or not ...??


Kind regards


.