In this month’s President Corner, I hope to provide you with a guide to the different types of ACR communications you may receive, with the goal of making news from the ACR more accessible to you, its members.
Guide to ACR Communications
ACR Insider
The ACR Insider e-newsletter is issued weekly and provides updates and links to the most recent information coming from the ACR and ARP that members should be aware of. Although there is always a focus on key upcoming events and deadlines, a broad range of topics is included, making this e-newsletter relevant to every rheumatology discipline.
For those seeking a focused update on the key current issues going in within the College, ACR Insider should not be missed.
ACR@Work
The ACR@Work e-newsletter focuses on advocacy and policy updates coming from the Washington, D.C., office and advocacy actions at the state level, as well as news and information to support members in practice. ACR@Work is issued biweekly and, along with ACR Insider, facilitates ongoing communication with members in these rapidly changing times. This communication highlights ways the ACR’s advocacy team is working to respond to recent executive orders and government actions and equips you with the information you need in the coming weeks and months.
Social media
Click to enlarge.
Social media has become an increasingly large part of how people get their news today. The ACR/ARP and our medical journals maintain an active presence on a wide range of social media platforms that people can follow to receive updates on recent and upcoming events. Links to all of these channels can be found at https://rheumatology.org/social-media.
Audience- & event-specific communications
- ACR FIT Focus—issued monthly to rheumatology fellows;
- ACR Fellowship Faculty Focus—issued monthly to rheumatology fellowship faculty;
- ARP Insider—issued quarterly to ARP members;
- ACR Convergence Today—highlights content from ACR Convergence;
- ACR RISE Exclusive—issued monthly to RISE registry participants; and
- ACR CareerConnection—an electronic platform for those seeking rheumatology-focused employment opportunities.
ACR publication communications
With the release of each monthly issue of the ACR journals, Arthritis & Rheumatology, Arthritis Care & Research and ACR Open Rheumatology, plus The Rheumatologist, members receive emailed issue alerts as well as e-newsletters linked to journal articles and topics. These emails are sent by our publisher, Wiley:
- ACR Early View provides highlights of the latest accepted journal articles;
- ACR ExamRheum is a quiz-style email based on a recent publication;
- ACR FocusRheum highlights collected articles on featured topics; and
- ACR eNewsRheum is issued twice a month and contains a mix of scientific updates, meeting coverage, journal summaries and ACR content.
The Rheumatologist
If you have no interest in anything electronic, the print edition of The Rheumatologist offers you that option. In addition to clinical discussions, editorials and commentaries, The Rheumatologist includes key updates and articles highlighting different aspects of the ACR/ARP to keep members updated. The wide readership of The Rheumatologist—both electronically and in print—was why I chose this specific venue for the President’s Corner in hopes of reaching as many members as possible on a monthly basis to bring you closer to different aspects of the College.
Communication Your Way
Although the College issues this wide range of communications to meet the needs of its diverse membership, not every area may be of interest to every member. With your membership updates, you can select your preferences for communications topics. This allows you to personalize your content, which cuts down on the volume of email you receive and, importantly, gets you the information that you wish to receive.
With all the emails we each receive every day, it is also recognized that some members have inadvertently unsubscribed from email communications coming from ACR. The College recently sent an email to those members who unsubscribed to e-newsletter communications that provided the ability to re-subscribe to updated information about what is occurring at the ACR/ARP. Every member can always log in to https://rheumatology.org and manage preferences via My Communication Preferences.
In addition, if you have read this article and feel that you have not been receiving some or all of these communications and wish to, reach out to the ACR Member Services team, who will be able to look at your email preferences and reset them (membership@ rheumatology.org).
A lot is happening at the ACR, and communication is the means through which we make sure that no one gets left out. The ACR appreciates that information overload is a very real issue faced by busy practitioners, and our communications and membership staff teams strive to bring information through from the College that matters most to you.
Carol A. Langford, MD, MHS, is the director of the Center for Vasculitis Care and Research in the Department of Rheumatic and Immunologic Diseases at Cleveland Clinic, where she is professor of medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and holds the Harold C. Schott endowed chair in rheumatic and immunologic diseases.
