Arthritis Foundation, Northwestern University Team Up to Improve Arthritis Outcomes
Initiative focuses on using patient-reported outcomes measures to improve care for people with arthritis.
The Arthritis Foundation teamed up with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine April 16 to co-sponsor a roundtable of national experts to discuss advancing care and outcomes for adults living with arthritis. The meeting, co-sponsored by Feinberg’s Department of Medical Social Sciences (MSS), divisions of rheumatology and orthopedics, helped lay the groundwork for the Foundation’s new Patient Reported Outcomes (PRO) initiative.
The initiative focuses on improving arthritis care nationwide. The Arthritis Foundation will work with clinical, research and patient advocacy experts to define methods for accelerating best practices in using PROs to measure pain and function.
Arthritis, including osteoarthritis and inflammatory arthritis, is the leading cause of disability in the U.S. As the population ages, the prevalence of osteoarthritis increases, with 60% of adults over 65 experiencing pain and limited physical function due to arthritis in their knees, hips or lower back. While effective treatments exist, there is no cure for arthritis, making the measurement and management of symptoms crucial for optimal care.
The need for such measures also is pressing, as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will mandate the use of PROs, including Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) measures, by 2027 for arthritis patients undergoing total knee or hip replacement surgery.
“PROs have long been a valuable part of clinical research, especially clinical trials. We strongly felt that Dr. Franklin and this group be supported in taking on the challenge of utilizing PRO measures to improve the outcomes of patients in clinical care,” says Jason Kim, PhD, Vice President of Osteoarthritis Research at the Arthritis Foundation.
Feinberg’s MSS department is renowned for developing and implementing PRO measures across various health conditions. The Arthritis Foundation partnered with Patricia D. Franklin, MD, MBA, MPH, a professor who has led national initiatives to use PROs for improving patient-centered decision-making and outcomes in arthritis surgery to host the roundtable. Leena Sharma, MD, MS, a rheumatologist and osteoarthritis expert, surgeons from the Feinberg Department of Orthopedics, and David Cella, PhD, professor and lead scientific developer of the PROMIS measurement system, also collaborated to create the event. Rinad Beidas, PhD, Chair of Medical Social Sciences, noted “I’m very grateful to Dr. Franklin and the Arthritis Foundation for bringing together expertise in outcomes and measurement science and implementation science to envision how to transform arthritis care.”
The Arthritis Foundation is currently funding research to advance the use of PROs in arthritis care shared decision-making to better incorporate the patient perspective into arthritis care and research. The Foundation also is providing seed money to support research projects supporting health care access and health outcomes for communities where they are not up to the highest standards.
The initiative focuses on improving arthritis care nationwide. The Arthritis Foundation will work with clinical, research and patient advocacy experts to define methods for accelerating best practices in using PROs to measure pain and function.
Arthritis, including osteoarthritis and inflammatory arthritis, is the leading cause of disability in the U.S. As the population ages, the prevalence of osteoarthritis increases, with 60% of adults over 65 experiencing pain and limited physical function due to arthritis in their knees, hips or lower back. While effective treatments exist, there is no cure for arthritis, making the measurement and management of symptoms crucial for optimal care.
The need for such measures also is pressing, as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will mandate the use of PROs, including Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) measures, by 2027 for arthritis patients undergoing total knee or hip replacement surgery.
“PROs have long been a valuable part of clinical research, especially clinical trials. We strongly felt that Dr. Franklin and this group be supported in taking on the challenge of utilizing PRO measures to improve the outcomes of patients in clinical care,” says Jason Kim, PhD, Vice President of Osteoarthritis Research at the Arthritis Foundation.
Feinberg’s MSS department is renowned for developing and implementing PRO measures across various health conditions. The Arthritis Foundation partnered with Patricia D. Franklin, MD, MBA, MPH, a professor who has led national initiatives to use PROs for improving patient-centered decision-making and outcomes in arthritis surgery to host the roundtable. Leena Sharma, MD, MS, a rheumatologist and osteoarthritis expert, surgeons from the Feinberg Department of Orthopedics, and David Cella, PhD, professor and lead scientific developer of the PROMIS measurement system, also collaborated to create the event. Rinad Beidas, PhD, Chair of Medical Social Sciences, noted “I’m very grateful to Dr. Franklin and the Arthritis Foundation for bringing together expertise in outcomes and measurement science and implementation science to envision how to transform arthritis care.”
The Arthritis Foundation is currently funding research to advance the use of PROs in arthritis care shared decision-making to better incorporate the patient perspective into arthritis care and research. The Foundation also is providing seed money to support research projects supporting health care access and health outcomes for communities where they are not up to the highest standards.
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