Practice Standards in Primary Care: The Physicians Role in Rheumatoid Arthritis Management

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Program Title:

Practice Standards in Primary Care: The Physicians Role in Rheumatoid Arthritis Management  -4 Part Webcast Series

Modules 1-3

Release Date: March 1, 2010

 

Expiration Date: March 31, 2011

Module 4

Release Date: June 1, 2010
Expiration Date: June 30, 2011

Estimated Completion Time:

Module 1, 2 Hours

Module 2, 2 Hours

Module 3, 1.5 Hours

 

Module 4, 1.5 Hours

Media: Internet

Hardware/Software Requirements

PC/Microsoft Windows 2000 SE or above./Internet Explorer (v5.5 or greater), or Firefox/Flash Player Plug-in (9.0 or later) Sound Card & Speakers/800 x 600 Minimum Monitor Resolution (1024 x 768 Recommended)/Adobe Acrobat Reader*

MAC/MAC OS 10.2.8/Safari/Firefox/Flash Player Plug-in (9.0 or later) Sound Card & Speakers/800 x 600 Minimum Monitor Resolution (1024 x 768 Recommended)/Adobe Acrobat Reader*/Internet Explorer is not supported on the Macintosh.

Jointly sponsored by:

Postgraduate Institute for Medicine and CE Health Interactive

This activity is supported by an educational grant from Bristol-Myers Squibb Company

Target Audience

This educational activity is designed for primary care physicians interested in, or involved with, the diagnosis and treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Statement of Need

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, immune-mediated inflammatory disorder characterized by erosive synovitis that, despite therapy, may result in progressive joint destruction, deformity, and, in up to 33% of patients, physical disability. In addition, 15% to 25% of patients with RA manifest extra-articular disease involvement, presenting with various comorbidities, including pulmonary (eg, fibrosis), cardiovascular (eg, atherosclerosis), renal (eg, amyloidosis), and cutaneous disorders. The primary goals in managing RA are to prevent or control joint damage, prevent loss of function, reduce inflammation, decrease pain, and maintain good health-related quality of life.

Current estimates are that RA affects approximately 2.1 million people, or between 0.5% and 1% of the US adult population, and occurs in all races and ethnic groups.  Women are affected 3 times more often than men. It is the paradigm immune-mediated inflammatory arthropathy in terms of pathophysiology of inflammatory arthritis, which makes it the initial target of drug development for agents ultimately intended for use in the treatment of other inflammatory arthropathies.

If left untreated, the majority of patients with RA become disabled, with as many as 80% exhibiting a compromise in activities related to daily living after 10 to 20 years of disease.

The application of disease-modifying therapy, usually provided by rheumatologists, can reduce the potential for disability by more than 60%. Prevention begins with early diagnosis, medical intervention, and specialist referral. Improving outcomes also requires a multidisciplinary team approach, including primary care physicians (PCPs), to identify and manage adverse effects of therapy and the occurrence of comorbidities.

Educational Objectives

Module 1: Rheumatoid Arthritis Primer for the Primary care Physician

1. Describe the underlying pathophysiology of RA, which leads to appropriate pathophysiologically directed treatments (e.g., TNF agents)

2. Identify the critical role of primary care clinicians in early diagnosis and referral of RA: Time is Joint

3. Recognize the nuances of agents used to generate disease modification in rheumatoid arthritis

Module 2: The PCP and the Adult Patient With Rheumatoid Arthritis at diagnosis

1. Recognize that rheumatoid arthritis is a clinical diagnosis

2. Identify appropriate labs that support the clinical diagnosis of RA and rule out other disorders when making a differential diagnosis

3. Recognize the importance of early diagnosis and the critical role of timely referrals for assuring the best outcomes

Module 3: Patient Management of comorbid conditions in Adults With Rheumatoid Arthritis

1. Explain the systemic nature of RA

2. Describe how comorbidities compound the arthritic burden

3. Recognize the value of communication strategies when applying a multidisciplinary approach to patient care in RA

4. Recall how therapeutic, non-drug approaches to patient care in RA affect improvements in quality of life

Module 4: topics determined by Participant Questions and Feedback

Faculty

David S. Kountz, MD
Senior Vice President of Medical and Academic Affairs
Jersey Shore University Medical Center
Neptune, NJ

Louis Kuritzky, MD
Clinical Assistant Professor
University of Florida College of Medicine
Department of Community Health
& Family Medicine
Family Medicine Residency Program
Gainesville, FL

Philip Mease, MD
Chief of Rheumatology Research
Swedish Medical Center
Clinical Professor of Medicine
University of Washington
Seattle, WA

Joan M. Von Feldt, MD, MS Ed
Professor of Medicine
Department of Medicine, Rheumatology Division
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Philadelphia, PA

Accreditation Statement

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint sponsorship of Postgraduate Institute for Medicine (PIM) and CE Health Interactive.  PIM is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Credit Designation

Postgraduate Institute for Medicine designates this educational activity for up to 5.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™ by completing the first 3 modules. A final Q&A webcast will provide up to 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™.  Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Module 1, Section 1 – 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Module 1, Section 2 – 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Module 1, Section 3 – 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Module 2, Section 1 – 0.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Module 2, Section 2 – 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Module 3, Section 1 – 0.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Module 3, Section 2 – 0.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Module 4 – 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™

Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest

Postgraduate Institute for Medicine (PIM) assesses conflict of interest with its instructors, planners, managers and other individuals who are in a position to control the content of CME activities. All relevant conflicts of interest that are identified are thoroughly vetted by PIM for fair balance, scientific objectivity of studies utilized in this activity, and patient care recommendations. PIM is committed to providing its learners with high quality CME activities and related materials that promote improvements or quality in healthcare and not a specific proprietary business interest of a commercial interest.

The faculty reported the following financial relationships or relationships to products or devices they or their spouse/life partner have with commercial interests related to the content of this CME activity:

David S. Kountz, MD, FACP
No financial relationships or relationships to products or devices with any commercial interest related to the content of this activity of any amount during the past 12 months.

Louis Kuritzky, MD

No financial relationships or relationships to products or devices with any commercial interest related to the content of this activity of any amount during the past 12 months.

 

Philip Mease, MD

Consulting Fees: Abbott, Amgen, BiogenIDEC, BMS, Centocor, Genentech, Roche, UCB, Wyeth, Pfizer

Fees for Non-CME Services: Abbott, Amgen, BiogenIDEC, BMS, Centocor, Genentech, UCB, Wyeth, Pfizer

Contracted Research: Abbott, Amgen, BiogenIDEC, BMS, Centocor, Genentech, Roche, Wyeth, Pfizer

Joan M. Von Feldt, MD, MS Ed
Salary: American Brand of Internal Medicine

Consulting Fees: UCB

 

The planners and managers reported the following financial relationships or relationships to products or devices they or their spouse/life partner have with commercial interests related to the content of this CME activity:

The following PIM planners and managers, Jan Hixon, RN, BSN, MA, Trace Hutchison, PharmD, Julia Kimball, RN, BSN, Samantha Mattiucci, PharmD and Jan Schultz, RN, MSN, CCMEP hereby state that they or their spouse/life partner do not have any financial relationships or relationships to products or devices with any commercial interest related to the content of this activity of any amount during the past 12 months.

The CE Health Interactive Medical Director, James A. Shiffer, RPh, CCP, hereby reports no financial relationships or relationships to products or devices with any commercial interest related to the content of this activity of any amount during the past 12 months.

Method of Participation

There are no fees for participating and receiving CME credit for this activity. During the period March 1, 2010 through June 2011, participants must
1) Read the learning objectives and faculty disclosures;
2) Study the educational activity;
3) Complete the posttest and evaluation form below and fax or mail all pages to:

 

Mail:            Postgraduate Institute for Medicine
367 Inverness Parkway, Suite 215
Englewood, CO  80112
Fax:            (303) 790-4876

Your statement of credit will be mailed to you within 3 weeks after receipt of a completed activity evaluation form and a completed posttest with a score of 70% or better.

Disclosure of Unlabeled Use

This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. Postgraduate Institute for Medicine (PIM), CE Health Interactive and Bristol-Myers Squibb do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications.

The opinions expressed in the educational activity are those of the faculty and do not necessarily represent the views of PIM, CE Health Interactive and Bristol-Myers Squibb. Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indications, contraindications, and warnings.

Disclaimer

Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information presented in this activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed or suggested in this activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of their patient’s conditions and possible contraindications on dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer’s product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities.

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