Objective To develop best practice statements for the provision of virtual care in adult and pediatric rheumatology for the Canadian Rheumatology Association's (CRA) Telehealth Working Group (TWG). Methods Four members of the TWG representing adult, pediatric, university-based and community rheumatology practices defined the scope of the project. A rapid literature review was conducted between April-May 2021 of existing systematic reviews, policy documents and published literature and abstracts on the topic. The review informed a candidate set of 7 statements and a supporting document. The statements were submitted to a 3-round (R) modified Delphi process with 22 panelists recruited through the CRA and patient advocacy organizations. Panelists rated the importance and feasibility of the statements on a Likert scale of 1-9. Statements with final median ratings between 7-9 with no disagreement were retained in the final set. Results 21 (95%) panelists participated in R1, 15 (71%) in R2 and 18 (82%) in R3. All but one statement met inclusion criteria during R1. Revisions were made to 5/7 statements following R2 and an additional statement was added. All statements met inclusion criteria following R3. The statements addressed the following themes in the provision of virtual care: adherence to existing standards and regulations, appropriateness, consent, physical examination, patient-reported outcomes, use in addition to in-person visits, and complex co-management of disease. Conclusion The best practice statements represent a starting point for advancing virtual care in rheumatology. Future educational efforts to help implement these best practices and research to address identified knowledge gaps are planned.

Our review has shown that even in models of care designed to improve access to care and early treatment, data to document improvements are often lacking. Where data were available for measuring, deficits in WT performance were noted for some centers. Our results highlight a need to improve reporting processes to drive quality improvement.

Objective We evaluated 4 national rheumatoid arthritis (RA) system-level performance measures (PMs) in Alberta, Canada. Methods Incident and prevalent RA cases ≥ 16 years of age since 2002 were identified using a validated case definition applied in provincial administrative data. Performance was ascertained through analysis of health data between fiscal years 2012/13-2015/16. Measures evaluated were: proportion of incident RA cases with a rheumatologist visit within one year of first RA diagnosis code (PM1); proportion of prevalent RA patients dispensed a disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD) annually (PM2); time from first visit with an RA code to DMARD dispensation, and proportion of incident cases where the 14-day benchmark for dispensation was met (PM3); and proportion of patients seen in annual follow-up (PM4). Results There were 31566 prevalent and 2730 incident RA cases (2012/13). Over the analysis period, the proportion of patients seen by a rheumatologist within 1 year of onset (PM1) increased from 55 to 63%; however, the proportion of RA patients dispensed DMARDs annually (PM2) remained low at 43%. While the median time to DMARD from first visit date in people who received DMARDs improved over time from 39 to 28 days, only 38-41% of patients received treatment within the 14-day benchmark (PM3). The percentage of patients seen in yearly follow-up (PM4) varied between 73-80%. Conclusion The existing Alberta health care system for RA is suboptimal, indicating barriers to accessing specialty care and treatment. The results inform quality improvement initiatives required within the province to meet national standards of care.

Objective The Canadian Rheumatology Association (CRA) launched the Workforce and Wellness Survey to update the Canadian rheumatology workforce characteristics. Methods The survey included demographic and practice information, pandemic impacts, and the Mini-Z questionnaire to assess burnout. French and English survey versions were distributed to CRA members electronically between 10/14/2020-3/5/2021. The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) rheumatologists per 75,000 population was estimated from the median proportion of time in clinical practice multiplied by provincial rheumatologist numbers from the Canadian Medical Association (CMA). Results Forty-four percent (183/417) of the estimated practicing rheumatologists (149 adult; 34 pediatric) completed the survey. The median age was 47 years, 62% were female, and 28% planned to retire within the next 5-10 years. Respondents spent a median of 65% of their time in clinical practice. FTE rheumatologists per 75,000 ranged between 0 and 0.70 in each province/territory and 0.62 per 75,000 nationally. This represents a deficit of 1 to 78 FTE rheumatologists per province/territory and 194 FTE rheumatologists nationally to meet the CRA's workforce benchmark. Approximately half of survey respondents reported burnout (51%). Women were more likely to report burnout (OR 2.86, 95%CI: 1.42-5.93). Older age was protective against burnout (OR 0.95, 95%CI: 0.92, 0.99). As a result of the pandemic, 97% of rheumatologists reported spending more time engaged in virtual care. Conclusion There is a shortage of rheumatologists in Canada. This shortage may be compounded by the threat of burnout to workforce retention and productivity. Strategies to address these workforce issues are urgently needed.