Read Sharon Worcester’s story for the details and an interview with investigator Dr. Joel Kremer.
Some buzz around EULAR was that this drug, if it becomes widely used, might put some rheumatology nurses out of work if more patients opt out of infusion treatments.
But never fear, nurses: the EULAR Nursing Task Force, a joint effort by rheumatologists, nurses, an occupational therapist, a psychologist, and epidemiologist, and patient representatives, is recommending ways to expand the role of nurses in arthritis care (no needles involved).
Ms. Yvonne van Eijk-Hustings of Maastricht University Medical Centre in the Netherlands emphasized that nurses can help in many other aspects of rheumatology care. For example, nurses in a rheumatology practice can serve as patient educators, and provide psychosocial support as well as disease management. With that in mind, the recommendations call for improving access to training for rheum nurses so they can boost their knowledge and skills in these non-clinical areas.
Read my colleague Denise Napoli’s story on the Task Force recommendations.
What’s next for rheum nurses? They shouldn’t put away their needles just yet. More EULAR buzz suggests that the price of tofacitinib may be prohibitive for many patients for the immediate future. And in the meantime, the EULAR Nursing Task Force recommendations will be reviewed and disseminated, Ms. van Eijk-Hustings said.
Related News: Read Doug Brunk’s story on patients’ positive feedback after tofacitinib.
–Heidi Splete (on Twitter @hsplete)