There are clinical questions that can be answered quickly by an eConsult, improving access to rheumatologists.

he number of patients requiring care from a rheumatologist has increased in recent years, while the number of rheumatologists available to provide clinical care remains inadequate and static. [1][2][3] In Canada, studies have found substantial variability in wait times for rheumatology. A study assessing time to first rheumatologist visit in new rheumatoid arthritis reported a mean wait time of 77 days, with a median wait time of 50 days. 4 Another study reported a mean wait time of 155 (standard deviation 88) days for routine rheumatology referrals. 5 To cope with these issues, some rheumatology practices have limited the number of referrals they accept and implemented strategies designed to improve triage, such as restrictions on accepted diagnoses, centralized intake and standardized referral forms. [5][6][7][8] Unfortunately, these measures can lead to more declined referrals, which cause a greater burden for patients.One solution in Eastern Ontario is the Champlain BASE (Building Access to Specialists Through eConsultation) eConsult Service, an asynchronous, secure Web-based appli-cation that allows primary care providers to submit patientspecific clinical questions to multiple specialty services, including rheumatology. 9,10 User satisfaction is high, with primary care providers commonly citing the service's promptness, quality of replies and added education from specialist