Benjamin J Smith1, Marcy B Bolster2, Barbara Slusher3, Christine Stamatos4, Jeanne R Scott5, Heather Benham6, Salahuddin Kazi7, Elizabeth A Schlenk8, Daniel E Schaffer9, Vikas Majithia10, Calvin R Brown11, Joan M Von Feldt12, Joseph Flood13, David M Haag14, Karen L Smarr15. 1. Florida State University College of Medicine, Tallahassee. 2. Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston. 3. University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston. 4. Northwell Health, Great Neck, New York. 5. Cheshire Medical Center and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Keene, Keene, New Hampshire. 6. Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, Dallas. 7. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas. 8. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 9. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. 10. University of Mississippi, Jackson. 11. Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois. 12. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. 13. Columbus Arthritis Center, Columbus, Ohio, and The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus. 14. American College of Rheumatology, Atlanta, Georgia. 15. Harry S. Truman Memorial VA Hospital, Columbia, Missouri.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Due to an aging population, increasing prevalence of rheumatic disease, and a growing supply and demand gap of rheumatology providers, innovative solutions are needed to meet the needs of persons with rheumatic conditions. Nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) have been identified as a group of health professionals who could help address the workforce shortage. The Executive Committee of the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ARHP), a division of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), charged a task force to facilitate the preparation of NPs/PAs to work in a rheumatology practice setting. METHODS: The task force, consisting of private practice and academic rheumatologists, and NPs and PAs, from both adult and pediatric settings, conducted a needs assessment survey of current NPs and PAs to identify mechanisms for acquiring rheumatology knowledge. Through face-to-face and webinar meetings, and incorporating stakeholder feedback, the task force designed a rheumatology curriculum outline to enrich the training of new NPs and PAs joining rheumatology practice. RESULTS: Informed by the needs assessment data and stakeholders, an NP/PA rheumatology curriculum outline was developed and endorsed by the ACR Board of Directors for use by community-based and academic rheumatology practices, whether pediatric or adult, who desire to add NPs and PAs to their practice setting. CONCLUSION: As rheumatology is facing workforce shortages, the ACR/ARHP rheumatology curriculum outline can be utilized to train NPs and PAs and create more efficient integration of NPs and PAs into rheumatology practice.
OBJECTIVE: Due to an aging population, increasing prevalence of rheumatic disease, and a growing supply and demand gap of rheumatology providers, innovative solutions are needed to meet the needs of persons with rheumatic conditions. Nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) have been identified as a group of health professionals who could help address the workforce shortage. The Executive Committee of the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ARHP), a division of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), charged a task force to facilitate the preparation of NPs/PAs to work in a rheumatology practice setting. METHODS: The task force, consisting of private practice and academic rheumatologists, and NPs and PAs, from both adult and pediatric settings, conducted a needs assessment survey of current NPs and PAs to identify mechanisms for acquiring rheumatology knowledge. Through face-to-face and webinar meetings, and incorporating stakeholder feedback, the task force designed a rheumatology curriculum outline to enrich the training of new NPs and PAs joining rheumatology practice. RESULTS: Informed by the needs assessment data and stakeholders, an NP/PA rheumatology curriculum outline was developed and endorsed by the ACR Board of Directors for use by community-based and academic rheumatology practices, whether pediatric or adult, who desire to add NPs and PAs to their practice setting. CONCLUSION: As rheumatology is facing workforce shortages, the ACR/ARHP rheumatology curriculum outline can be utilized to train NPs and PAs and create more efficient integration of NPs and PAs into rheumatology practice.
Authors: Andrew M Briggs; Rana S Hinman; Ben Darlow; Kim L Bennell; Michelle Leech; Tania Pizzari; Alison M Greig; Crystal MacKay; Andrea Bendrups; Peter J Larmer; Alison Francis-Cracknell; Elizabeth Houlding; Lucy A Desmond; Joanne E Jordan; Novia Minaee; Helen Slater Journal: ACR Open Rheumatol Date: 2019-05-22