VIDEO: What clinicians should consider in their awareness of rheumatoid arthritis

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I think it is really important to fully appreciate and understand and talk to patients about where they're at in their life. I've mentioned burden. There's this minimally disruptive medicine, which really is very patient centered, context specific and tries to limit or provide as little burden as possible in our treatments. But the flip side of that is to assess the patient's capacity to do the things that we're asking them to do: to come to the clinic, to go to the lab, to take this medicine, and then to do all of the other things in terms of their general health -- get enough sleep, exercise, eat a Mediterranean diet -- to be really aware of what else is going on in their life, if they have small children, they're caring for elderly parents or family member, and if there are financial stressors, et cetera. So, awareness of each person's context and the only way to understand that is to ask and to listen. So, I think that's really important for rheumatologists and for, really, any clinician and really trying to come up with a plan that works, that fits into that patient's life at that time in their life. And my work with patients and exploring their goals for treatment with rheumatoid arthritis, that while we may have a goal of low disease activity or remission, their goals may be very different in terms of wanting to attend a significant event, like a wedding. They may be more focused on their fatigue. They may want to improve sleep. They may be having really significant issues with their mood. However we can help support patients in their journey and really to be aware of all of these other issues that are associated in terms of anxiety, depression, in terms of sleep and talking about physical activity, and that can actually help with mood. That can help with sleep. That can help with fatigue. And sort of just expanding our scope in our very limited time with patients. It's not easy to do everything, but I think really establishing clear communication and really listening to our patients and trying to be present when we're with them is something I would say in this world of many distractions, many tasks, not enough hours in the day, that whatever we can do to foster that relationship because it really is a privilege to care for persons with rheumatoid arthritis.