Over the past year, in my role as ACR president-elect, I have participated in the ILAR Executive Committee meetings and have personally witnessed the genuine enthusiasm and deep commitment to advance rheumatology in the neediest countries of the world. ILAR’s new Executive Committee held its first meeting at the ACR Annual Scientific Meeting in Boston in November 2007. During this first meeting, the committee members unanimously endorsed the ILAR mission and resolved governance issues. At ILAR’s second Executive Committee meeting, held in June 2008 in conjunction with the EULAR Congress in Paris, we launched a new program to fund ILAR projects aimed at improving rheumatology care in countries represented by PANLAR, APLAR, and AFLAR. Given ILAR’s limited budget, only $100,000 could be committed to these projects in 2009. A call for proposals was issued indicating that priority would be given to projects focused specifically on improvements in rheumatology education or clinical practice, as opposed to research.
The ILAR Executive Committee was delighted, and somewhat surprised, to receive 61 applications in response to their call for proposals. This overwhelming response clearly indicated strong interest among the ILAR community from all over the world. Because there were many more outstanding ideas than funds available, a substantial portion of the third ILAR Executive Committee meeting—held in October 2008 in conjunction with the ACR annual meeting in San Francisco—was devoted to brainstorming about ways to support as many projects as possible and to work together to pursue new funding mechanisms to support others. Ten projects will receive ILAR funding in 2009. In addition, the ACR agreed to provide educational materials, at no charge, to support several of these projects.
Even though the initial round of ILAR projects is complete, I encourage you to reach out to the ACR throughout the year with ideas for ways that we can encourage progress in rheumatology throughout the world. Please do not hesitate to contact me personally at [email protected] with your ideas. Supporting and improving rheumatology care worldwide is an important goal that will have a positive impact on patient care globally, so I welcome your ideas and encourage your participation.
In leading the effort to create a renewed ILAR, the ACR has embraced its responsibility as a global world citizen. Through its commitment to ILAR, the ACR has taken the initial steps to breaking down the geographic barriers that superficially divide the rheumatology community and impede progress toward our common goal of creating a strong and unified global specialty. I have been privileged to be a part of this remarkable effort. Sitting around the table with the leaders in the international community and working together to promote the specialty has been a uniquely rewarding experience. It is only through our collective efforts that we can begin to address healthcare inequalities in the rheumatic diseases./p>