Alabama Chapter Makes History!

March 28, 2008

Alabama Chapter Makes History!

Welcome
Dr. Tim Beukelman
Dr. Randy Cron

To the Rheumatology Clinic at Children's Hospital Park Place

In response to a severe shortage of pediatric rheumatologists in the United States, as revealed in a recent report by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Arthritis Foundation Alabama Chapter launched an initiative to recruit pediatric rheumatologists to serve Alabama children living with juvenile arthritis.   The culmination of this effort was this month’s opening of Alabama’s newly established Pediatric Rheumatology Center.  It is led by two board-certified pediatric rheumatologists recruited to start the program.
 

With an estimated 6,000 children living with arthritis within the state’s borders, the Arthritis Foundation Alabama Chapter knew it was vital that medical care be made available for these children and their families.  In early 2006, the Alabama Chapter began a successful campaign to raise $1 million to establish an endowed chair in pediatric rheumatology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and to partner with Children’s Hospital of Alabama to establish a dedicated clinic facility to care for these children. 


The Alabama Chapter spent most of 2006 collecting donations and partnering with the university and Children’s Hospital of Alabama to interview qualified candidates.  After months of dedication and hard work, Drs. Randy Cron and Tim Beukelman were welcomed to the pediatric rheumatology department of UAB.  They began seeing patients in mid-September at a new, state-of-the-art rheumatology clinic at Children’s Hospital.
 

Nearly 300,000 children in the United States are living with juvenile arthritis, and the Arthritis Foundation is firmly committed to ensuring access to treatment for every child who suffers from this devastating disease,” said John H. Klippel, M.D., president and CEO of the Arthritis Foundation.  “We are immensely proud of the efforts of our Alabama Chapter and its partners in spotlighting the incredible need for specialized care in their state and working hard to bring their plan to fruition.”
 

Prior to the recruitment of Drs. Cron and Beukelman, Alabama was one of 13 states identified in the HRSA report as lacking the services of a practicing pediatric rheumatologist.  A staggering statistic revealed in the HRSA report is that fewer than 200 certified pediatric rheumatologists practice in this country, requiring most children living with arthritis to travel an average of 57 miles to reach the nearest specialist.  Without a single pediatric rheumatologist in Alabama, the state’s children were forced to travel much longer distances to seek specialized care.  
 

Since juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is one of the most common chronic illnesses among children, the need for pediatric rheumatologists is vital,” says Jan Bell, Arthritis Foundation Alabama Chapter president.  “By having two highly experienced and qualified pediatric rheumatologists available for the children of Alabama, we can provide more accessible and much needed care to help prevent severe disability caused by untreated juvenile arthritis.”
 

The combined efforts of the Arthritis Foundation Alabama Chapter, UAB and Children’s Hospital of Alabama have fueled a much needed program for the children of Alabama as well as inspired others to support education and recruiting programs for pediatric rheumatologists.  As a whole, the Arthritis Foundation supports the Arthritis Prevention, Control and Cure Act, which is recently introduced legislation that would authorize loan repayment programs for pediatric rheumatology, increase the number and size of institutional training grants to institutions supporting pediatric rheumatology, and expand public-private partnerships to encourage pediatric rheumatology education and training.  


For additional information on the Arthritis Foundation, Alabama Chapter’s recruiting efforts, please visit http://www.alabamajai.org.  More information about the HRSA report, the Arthritis Prevention, Control and Cure Act and the Arthritis Foundation research program is available at  www.arthritis.org.