Alvin Wells, MD, PhD, Appointed Director for Department of Rheumatology, Advocate Aurora Healthcare Medical Group
In July, Alvin F. Wells, MD, PhD, was named director of the Department of Rheumatology for the Advocate Aurora Healthcare Medical Group of Wisconsin.
Dr. Wells, who holds faculty appointments at Marquette University, MCOW, Duke University, Durham, N.C., and the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, joined AAMG-WI in 2019 after being in private practice for 15 years. In his new role, Dr. Wells has already begun to advance his goals to better integrate telemedicine into the practice, enhancing outreach to rural catchment areas. For example, as the only pediatric rheumatologist in the practice, Dr. Wells has outlined ways to shorten the wait for children to be seen. This could involve a virtual early morning consult before school starts, and scheduling appointments for labs and X-rays after school—all of which would minimize family disruption while ensuring more immediate care for children with acute symptoms.
Dr. Wells is a leading clinical trials researcher, and his vision for the 12-physician department also includes instituting optional monthly staff meetings to review updates, new clinical guidelines and research. Every quarter a mandatory meeting will take place, and plans for a half-day staff retreat are in the works, a plan that Dr. Wells believes can foster group cohesion by inviting staff members to bring up concerns and address issues.
Another prong of Dr. Wells’ evidence-based approach entails closer collaborations with radiologists. He is certified to interpret radiographic and ultrasound images, but realizes that it may be unrealistic to expect all those in his department to have that skill set. “It’s on my list to integrate communication with the radiology department leader,” he notes, to educate colleagues about what he and other rheumatologists are looking for in radiographs, such as swelling and erosion of the joints, as well as inflammation.
Licensed in four other states besides Wisconsin, Dr. Wells is conversant with telemedicine, and wants to help his staff incorporate the technology more into their practices. Indeed, the COVID-19 pandemic, in his words “has been the fuel for the telemedicine fire.” The technology can be useful as a triage approach, he says, to conduct initial video evaluations, order blood work and imaging, and make decisions about patients’ situations that are more pressing and that warrant in-person visits.
The one drawback he sees to pushing telemedicine is that many rural areas do not yet have adequate broadband and internet access. He hopes impending infrastructure improvements will solve this dilemma.
He presented a session on disparities in rheumatology at the 2022 Winter Rheumatology Symposium. “We’ve got amazing therapies now,” he points out. “I tell people that we should do evidence-based medicine, and find ways to get people on these drugs.”
Gretchen Henkel is a health and medical journalist based in California.
