The mission of the Rheumatology Research Foundation, a division of the ACR, is to advance research and training to improve the health of patients living with rheumatic disease. It supports career advancement, mentorship, professional development and education of professionals working in the disciplines essential to these patients.1
“The Foundation understands that the support of Association of Rheumatology Professionals (ARP) members is important to achieving its overarching mission because these health professionals work in so many of the disciplines—occupational therapy, physical therapy (PT), pharmacy, practice management, etc.—that are essential to improving the health of patients living with rheumatic disease,” says Heather Benham, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC, who works in pediatric rheumatology at Scottish Rite for Children, Dallas, and is a member of the Foundation’s Impact Advisory Council. “ARP members can already take advantage of the many funding opportunities offered by the Foundation.”
Awards
Since 1985, the Foundation has committed more than $205 million to the field of rheumatology through more than 4,115 research and training awards. In the current fiscal year, the Foundation will commit around $12.84 million to fund more than 120 awards for education, training, career development and research. Around a quarter of these awards will support efforts to recruit and train the next generation of rheumatology professionals; the remaining funds will be awarded to advance research projects leading to innovations in treating patients with rheumatic diseases and to supporting the early career development of rheumatology researchers.2
In fiscal year 2022, the Foundation committed approximately $1.43 million to ARP members, representing a 160% increase over the previous fiscal year. “Because we have so many deadlines throughout the year, we are unsure what the total allocated to ARP members will be this year, but we remain dedicated to funding as many projects as possible,” says Eryn Marchiolo, MPH, vice president of mission at the Foundation.
By assisting with large and small sum grants, the Foundation supports career advancement, mentorship, professional development and education of ARP members in the specialty of rheumatology, says ARP President Barbara Slusher, MSW, PA-C, supervisor of advanced practice providers at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Galveston and League City, Texas.
“The Foundation offers short-term mentoring and career advancement in the form of four- to eight-week awards for preceptorships for medical and graduate students who are interested in exploring the field of rheumatology. These awards offer a unique opportunity for trainees to work closely with an ACR/ARP rheumatology mentor to learn more about the field of rheumatology,” says Ms. Slusher. “For longer-term mentorship and career advancement, the Foundation offers the two-year Future Physician Scientist Award, for MD/PhD or DO/PhD candidates, and the three-year Scientist Development Award for rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals to pursue innovative research ideas.”
For health professionals new to rheumatology, the Health Professional Online Education Grant provides financial support to complete the ARP’s flagship courses: Fundamentals of Rheumatology and eBytes. This grant can also be used by health professionals, including doctors of pharmacy, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and fellows looking for more in-depth education, such as the Advanced Rheumatology Course, explains Ms. Slusher.
Workforce Expansion
According to Dr. Benham, “One of the Foundation’s most recent funding programs, the Mentored Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistant Award for Workforce Expansion, has been important in addressing the current workforce shortage facing the subspecialty of rheumatology.”
The Mentored Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistant Award for Workforce Expansion is a 12-month mentorship between nurse practitioners and physician assistants and an ACR member rheumatologist. The award provides resources and the framework of knowledge and skills needed by nurse practitioners and physician assistants who are new to rheumatology to facilitate their integration into a rheumatology practice. The maximum award amount is $25,000 and the application deadline is Dec. 1.3
“The Mentored Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistant Award for Workforce Expansion seeks to help increase the supply of rheumatology healthcare professionals, especially in underserved areas. Since the inception of this funding opportunity in 2019, the Foundation has awarded funds to 37 programs,” says Dr. Benham. “Our pediatric rheumatology center was one of the initial awardees and this allowed us to add another nurse practitioner to our care team, something that has benefited our patients and families in an immense way.”
Ms. Marchiolo says the Foundation continues “to want to grow the Mentored Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistant Award for Workforce Expansion. We have seen really great outcomes over the first cycles of the award and would love to see an increase in applications.”
Research Projects
ARP members benefit from the Foundation’s financial support for educational offerings as well as from the opportunity to submit research proposals for funding, says Linda S. Ehrlich-Jones, PhD, RN, associate director at the Center for Rehabilitation Outcomes Research at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, Chicago, and a member of the Foundation’s Development Advisory Council.
Dr. Ehrlich-Jones explains that along with the Scientist Development Award, research awards include Career Development Bridge Funding (R Bridge); Career Development Bridge Funding (K Supplement and K Bridge); and the Investigator Award. In addition to the Mentored Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistant Award for Workforce Expansion, education awards include the Clinician Scholar Educator Award and the Lawren H. Daltroy Preceptorship in Health Communication.
Further, the Innovative Research Award provides funding to independent researchers to pursue ideas that could lead to breakthroughs in discovering new treatments for patients with rheumatologic diseases, improve patient outcomes and/or increase quality of care. The award provides support for studies focused on generating new insights into the cause, progression, treatment and outcomes of rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases. The two-year award offers up to $400,000 ($200,000 per year). The next award term starts in July 2023.4
Recent Innovative Research Award recipients and ARP members include Daniel White, PT, ScD, MSc, an associate professor in the Department of Physical Therapy, University of Delaware, Newark, and Susan Murphy, ScD, OTR, an associate professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
“Our group felt the need to study telehealth for knee osteoarthritis given the COVID-19 pandemic and the closing of PT outpatient clinics, leaving patients without treatment options. As well, there is a major need to improve access to PT for all,” says Dr. White. “We are using the award to conduct a randomized trial to investigate if telehealth physical therapy can improve physical activity, function and pain in adults with knee osteoarthritis compared [with] usual care. … To date, we have recruited and randomized over 70% of our sample, who come from over 35 different states, and include 20% of people who are from underrepresented minority groups.”
Dr. Murphy explains that she received the Innovative Research Award with co-principal investigator Dinesh Khanna, MBBS, MSc, professor of rheumatology at Michigan Medicine and director of the University of Michigan’s scleroderma program, to conduct a clinical trial to test a resilience-based energy management program, called RENEW, for people with systemic sclerosis.
“In this project, we are examining whether the RENEW program has effects on fatigue and other symptoms, like pain interference and depressed mood. The program has online and app-based learning modules from established cognitive behavioral therapy treatments and positive psychology theory to address different health behaviors, and we have trained patient partners who also have systemic sclerosis to serve as health coaches in the program,” Dr. Murphy says. “The clinical trial is going very well. We have about 100 people enrolled so far, with a goal of 168 participants. Because all study procedures are remote, we have participants from seven countries in the world taking part.”
Looking Ahead
Dr. Benham notes that as ACR Convergence 2022 will be in person again, the Student and Resident ACR Convergence Scholarship will cover registration fees and $2,000 for travel expenses, plus a one-year ACR/ARP membership for students interested in a career in rheumatology. As a part of the Foundation’s Choose Rheumatology campaign, the award aims to introduce students and residents in areas of the U.S. underserved by rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals to the specialty of rheumatology. Students and residents from racial and ethnic groups who are underrepresented in health-related science are also eligible to receive the award. At the meeting, which runs Nov. 10–14 in Philadelphia, awardees will attend a Choose Rheumatology event.5,6
Looking ahead, the ARP is assisting in evaluating the Foundation’s portfolio to identify any gaps in support, as well as looking at potential new opportunities for grant support of health professionals.
“We are excited that we have three ARP members on the Portfolio Review Panel this year, which is an increase over the previous panel,” says Ms. Marchiolo. “It is a process that we go through every five years; we conduct a thorough review of the efficacy of the Foundation’s awards programs and identify gaps and future needs.” The panel will make recommendations for necessary program changes to better meet the needs of the rheumatology community to the Foundation’s board in February 2023.
The “ARP is grateful for the ongoing efforts by the Foundation in support of our varied membership. We believe that, together, we are a powerful force to invite, recruit, develop, educate and ultimately retain health professionals dedicated to a career in rheumatology,” Ms. Slusher notes.
Dr. Benham says that some ARP members may be unaware of what the Foundation has to offer. “As an ARP member, I look to the Foundation as a resource for research and educational support. I think an important aspect moving forward is to connect ARP awardees with other ARP members to provide mentorship and guidance.”
Dr. Ehrlich-Jones suggests that, along with looking for mechanisms to support clinical and research efforts, “I believe that ARP members look to the Foundation as a source of help for their patients. Through the support from the Foundation, patients will reap the benefits of the research that can help improve the quality of their lives.”
Katie Robinson is a medical writer based in New York.
References
- Rheumatology Research Foundation website. https://www.rheumresearch.org/the-foundation.
- Rheumatology Research Foundation Announces more than 120 awards for education, training, career development and research. News Release. 2022 Jul 1. https://www.rheumresearch.org/the-foundation/press-releases/rheumatology-research-foundation-announces-more-than-120-awards-for-education-training-career-development-and-research.
- Rheumatology Research Foundation. Mentored Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistant Award for Workforce Expansion. https://www.rheumresearch.org/file/awards/04-education-and-training/FY23-Mentored-NPPA-Award-for-Workforce-Expansion_Dec-2022-Deadline.pdf.
- Rheumatology Research Foundation. Innovative Research Award (IRA). https://www.rheumresearch.org/file/awards/02-innovative-research/FY24-Innovative-Research-Award—FINAL_6.6.22.pdf.
- Rheumatology Research Foundation. Student and Resident ACR Convergence Scholarship. https://www.rheumresearch.org/file/awards/06-annual-meeting-awards/FY23-ACR-Convergence-Annual-Meeting-Scholarship—FINAL.pdf. Accesses July 25, 2022.
- American College of Rheumatology. ACR Convergence 2022. https://www.rheumatology.org/Annual-Meeting.
