The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 News
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Psoriatic Arthritis Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
    • Interprofessional Perspective
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
      • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / Prospects for Treating Patients with Arthritis in African Countries with Few Rheumatologists

Prospects for Treating Patients with Arthritis in African Countries with Few Rheumatologists

June 14, 2017 • By Elizabeth Hofheinz, MPH, MEd

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF
Ethiopia has no rheumatologists to treat its population with rheumatic illnesses.

Ethiopia has no rheumatologists to treat its population with rheumatic illnesses.
MyImages – Micha/shutterstock.com

At present, the U.S. has approximately 5,000 full-time adult rheumatologists. By the year 2025, that number will decline to roughly 3,600.1 Sounds dire, right? Hold that thought.

You Might Also Like
  • Rheumatologists Treating Patients with HIV Face Treatment, Diagnostic Challenges
  • Experts Discuss Rheumatologists’ Role in Treating Depression, Anxiety and Psychological Comorbidities in Their Patients
  • Demand for Arthritis Care in America Outstrips Supply of Practicing Rheumatologists
Explore This Issue
June 2017
Also By This Author
  • New Study Aimed at Better Predicting Large Vessel Vasculitis Relapse

Question: What country has 99 million people and no adult rheumatologists?

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Answer: Ethiopia.2

The Nigerian Story

And then there is Africa’s most populous country, Nigeria, with roughly 170 million people. It has 30 rheumatologists.3

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

The Rheumatologist talked to one of them—the first one ever in Nigeria, in fact: Femi O. Adelowo, FRCP, MACR, is professor of medicine and a consultant rheumatologist at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital and the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, both in Lagos, Nigeria.

Dr. Adelowo, current president of the African League of Associations for Rheumatology, states, “I qualified as a rheumatologist in 1982. At that point, I felt it was my duty to train others, so I wrote the curriculum for two of Nigeria’s medical colleges. Now, I have many residents interested in rheumatology who come from all over Nigeria to train with me for a year and a half; then they return to their homes and launch rheumatology clinics.”

Detailing the progression of training in Nigeria, Dr. Adelowo says, “The program is a minimum of six years and leads to the award of a Fellowship of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria in rheumatology or a Fellowship of the West African College of Physicians in rheumatology. Both programs have three parts: 1) A preresidency examination consisting of human physiology, anatomy, pharmacology, clinical chemistry, microbiology and statistics, among others.2) A three-year rotation through the major subspecialties of internal medicine, such as endocrinology, dermatology, cardiology, pulmonology and others. This culminates in an examination.3) Three years in a subspecialty culminating in the award of a fellowship from the appropriate college. The exams consist of an original dissertation, a multiple choice paper, an oral exam on the specialty and an oral exam on general medicine. Success in all aspects of this exam qualifies the candidate as eligible to be appointed a consultant.”

ad goes here:advert-3
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Although progress in training has occurred, says Dr. Adelowo, arthritis remains a poorly understood disease. “Many trainees interested in rheumatology have come for courses and have had their eyes opened as to the full spectrum of rheumatic diseases. Many people believe that arthritis is just one disease. Even among health personnel, there is a lack of awareness that there are different types of arthritis and different causes and modalities of treatment. Often, both medical professionals and patients still think arthritis is a disease that happens solely to the elderly.”

Glasshouse College, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, where Femi O. Adelowo, FRCP, MACR, is professor of medicine and a consultant rheumatologist.

Glasshouse College, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, where Femi O. Adelowo, FRCP, MACR, is professor of medicine and a consultant rheumatologist.

Michele Meltzer teaches physicians how to do joint examination in a rural hospital in Ethiopia.

Michele Meltzer teaches physicians how to do joint examination in a rural hospital in Ethiopia.

“Also impeding progress is that many people have an erroneous belief that all diseases, arthritis included, are due to some sort of evil spells or ‘spiritual’ attacks. This often leads to denials by the affected individuals, visits to alternative healers and delays in seeking professional medical help.”

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 | Single Page

Filed Under: Conditions, Education & Training, Practice Management, Workforce Tagged With: Africa, Arthritis, Ethiopia, Nigeria, patient care, Rheumatic Disease, rheumatologist, shortage, TreatmentIssue: June 2017

You Might Also Like:
  • Rheumatologists Treating Patients with HIV Face Treatment, Diagnostic Challenges
  • Experts Discuss Rheumatologists’ Role in Treating Depression, Anxiety and Psychological Comorbidities in Their Patients
  • Demand for Arthritis Care in America Outstrips Supply of Practicing Rheumatologists
  • Rheumatologists May Help Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis Overcome Obstacles to Sex

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

Meeting Abstracts

Browse and search abstracts from the ACR Convergence and ACR/ARP Annual Meetings going back to 2012.

Visit the Abstracts site »

ACR Convergence

Don’t miss rheumatology’s premier scientific meeting for anyone involved in research or the delivery of rheumatologic care or services.

Visit the ACR Convergence site »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2022 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.