3. Memorandum from Arthritis Care
Arthritis Care is the UK's leading organisation
working with and for people with arthritis. Our mission is to
offer the nine million people with arthritis in the UK the information
and support they need to make informed choices about managing
their arthritis, to channel their concerns to decision-makers
and to seek to ensure that health services genuinely involve and
meet the needs of people with arthritis.
Arthritis Care warmly welcomes the NAO report
on services for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and supports
its recommendations. Our Chief Executive, Neil Betteridge, has
in fact been involved in the production of the report as a member
of the report's steering committee.
The evidence presented by the NAO and its assessment
of the prevalence of RA, far in excess of previous estimates,
demonstrates the urgency for taking action.
WHAT PEOPLE
WITH RA SAY
THEY NEED
The many thousands of people with RA who have
approached Arthritis Care for information, support and advice
over recent years have expressed to us a series of key, recurring
concerns and difficulties which they encounter in seeking assistance
for their condition. These are:
— Health services for musculoskeletal conditions
are not sufficiently joined-up, and community-based services are
scarce;
— GPs are not always familiar with the
symptoms of RA and therefore there is a gap before that vital
referral onto a specialist for diagnosis and treatment;
— Arthritis is often dismissed as a few
aches and pains, meaning that friends, family, colleagues and
the public can underestimate its impact on people with RA. It
can also mean that people often delay going to see their doctor
as they do not recognise the symptoms as something serious; and
— many people with arthritis do not know
where they can find information about their condition or about
ways in which they can self-manage their condition.
WHAT WE
ARE CALLING
FOR
— The Department of Health should appoint
a National Clinical Director for musculoskeletal services to lead
on improving the quality of services for people with arthritis
across England in line with the NAO recommendations.
— The Quality and Outcomes Framework should
include a clear indicator on MSK conditions, arthritis or chronic
pain in light of the fact that 30% of a GP's workload is musculoskeletal.
— The Department of Health should run a
public health campaign to increase the number of people with symptoms
of rheumatoid arthritis presenting early to their GP.
23 November 2009
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