Since 2017, Dana Guglielmo, MPH, has been an epidemiology fellow in the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) program at the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Her story paints a picture of purpose and perseverance.
As a teenager, Ms. Guglielmo was one of the top distance runners in New Jersey. She was a member of her high school’s cross country and track teams, running 40–50 miles every week to get in shape for competitions. But at the age of 17, she was diagnosed with RA.
“I saw firsthand how behavioral and lifestyle modifications were essential to effectively manage this disease and continue to be an athlete,” she says. “I wasn’t willing to give up my active lifestyle and wanted to ensure others with arthritis didn’t have to either.”
So Ms. Guglielmo pursued her Master of Public Health with a concentration in behavioral science, graduating in 2016 from Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta. Throughout graduate school, she actively searched for opportunities in arthritis research and found minimal opportunities, which was her first indication that arthritis public health is often overshadowed by other chronic and infectious diseases.
“This made me even more determined to break into the field of arthritis public health research,” she says.
During her fellowship, she is gaining hands-on experience involving behavioral epidemiology, epidemiological methods and data analysis. She has also published studies on arthritis prevalence and mental health, pain, physical inactivity and healthcare provider counseling for weight loss among adults with arthritis. Her published works have appeared in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) and a co-authored paper in the ACR’s journal, Arthritis & Rheumatology. She has also presented her findings at ACR/ARP Annual Meetings.
Ms. Guglielmo believes this award is a reflection of the support and encouragement she has received from the ACR/ARP. She also credits her mentors, who have helped her successfully transition from a graduate student to a young researcher.
Through her epidemiology research, she hopes to generate more public awareness about the major impact arthritis can have on people and their families. Within the next several years, Ms. Guglielmo plans to pursue a PhD in epidemiology, focusing on behavioral epidemiology, social determinants of health and how modifiable risk factors can affect arthritis outcomes.
Among her career goals is helping adults with arthritis learn how physical activity can help ease their arthritic pain and improve their quality of life.
“This award gives me confidence that I’m on the right path to making a difference,” says Ms. Guglielmo.
Ms. Christiansen
A research assistant at the University of Delaware, Newark, for the past three years, Ms. Christiansen says it’s exciting to be part of the ARP, which she calls a “melting pot” organization that includes not just PTs, but clinicians and scientists who share new research ideas and unique approaches to improve clinical care.
“Being able to access and learn from leading scientists who research all types of rheumatological diseases is a valuable experience,” she says. “So I feel especially grateful and proud to receive this recognition of my accomplishments as a PhD student and join the group of clinical scientists who have been recognized for their research.”
Ms. Christiansen has been an active ARP member since 2016. She served on its eLearning Subcommittee, was an abstract reviewer for the 2019 ACR/APR Annual Meeting and was recognized by Arthritis Care & Research as one of the journal’s top reviewers.
Since she embarked on her PhD training and began conducting research in the field of rheumatology, Ms. Christiansen has had several papers and abstracts published, with others under review. She has also had six poster presentations at national and international conferences.
Ms. Christiansen received her Doctor of Physical Therapy in 2012 from Pacific University, Forest Grove, Ore., and completed an orthopedic PT residency two years later at UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas. She worked as a PT in private practice for two years in Dallas before starting her PhD in biomechanics and movement science at the University of Delaware, Newark, in 2016.
Ms. Christiansen’s research currently focuses on PT utilization for knee osteoarthritis. Over the past several years, she has received research funds from two different sources: the Rheumatology Research Foundation for her research related to a clinical trial promoting physical activity after total knee replacement and the Academy of Orthopaedic Physical Therapy for her dissertation project, Investigating Physical Therapy Utilization for Knee Osteoarthritis—A Mixed Method Study.
Although PT is a key part of managing knee osteoarthritis, Ms. Christiansen says very few people with the disease end up receiving it. In the future, she envisions translating her research findings to optimize access and utilization in those with knee osteoarthritis who could benefit from PT services.
“A lot of my research is trying to understand some of the barriers or misperceptions about the disease and reasons why people tend to underutilize physical therapy,” says Ms. Christiansen. “I find this area of rheumatology interesting because it can directly impact clinical care.”
