Glimpse the Future

ARHP President

Assuming the ARHP presidency will ramp up an already intense schedule for Kimberly Kimpton, PT, of HealthMark in Denver. During this past year as president-elect, she’s been an integral part of Executive Committee activities. And, with an eye not just to her upcoming term but also to the sustained growth of the organization, she has personally had a hand in reinvigorating the membership of ARHP’s other standing committees.

Craft Committees Carefully

Kimpton traces her involvement with the ARHP back to a letter she wrote to meeting organizers following her first contact with the program at an annual meeting. Her comments landed her an invitation to be on the program subcommittee. “I’ve been part of this organization for about 15 years,” she says. “I got drawn in early and I’ve been receiving value ever since.”

As the 2008 president, she’ll have a chance to further the organization’s reach and scope, a goal about which she is clearly passionate. That goal will be attainable due in part to the activism of her fellow ARHP members. “Over 10% of our membership is involved in leadership, committee membership, or representatives to ACR committees,” she says. Because health professionals are a diverse group – comprising nurses, physical therapists, nurse practitioners (NPs), and physician assistants (PAs), to name a few – it’s a challenge to address the needs of and provide professional support for each discipline. That’s why committee leadership recruiting efforts always emphasize both geographic and interdisciplinary distribution.

To broaden its support for diverse disciplines, the ARHP, through its Committee on Education and its Program Subcommittee, is developing products to “help people identify why this is their organization and how this can primarily benefit them,” says Kimpton. The ARHP will debut the fruits of the two year–long NP/PA Education Project at this year’s annual meeting. This Web-based rheumatology training course will be available in the spring. “When dollars to travel to face-to-face meetings are shrinking, we’re growing,” enthused Kimpton. “We’re throwing in Web-based education to fill that hole and take care of that need.”

2008 and Beyond

The ARHP is keenly aware of the need to attract and retain more members. “I would say the new generation is where we’re really headed,” says Kimpton. “We need to make sure that we integrate technology [into our efforts] so that we can reach those that cannot make face-to-face meetings, and find ways to support their educational needs.”