The ACR recognizes this issue and has made addressing both adult and pediatric workforce issues a priority. I am part of the newly developed ACR Workforce Solutions Committee, which is developing several innovative strategies to increase the training of new pediatric rheumatology providers and to support existing providers to improve barriers to care.
TR: What are some of the advances in the field that have improved the lives of children with rheumatic conditions?
Dr. Correll: Major advances in the field include new safe and effective treatments. The options for treatments continue to grow for juvenile idiopathic arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and many other pediatric rheumatic diseases. Especially for juvenile idiopathic arthritis, we now have several treatment options from which to choose, and in most circumstances our expectation is that children will have an excellent prognosis.
TR: Tell us about yourself.
Dr. Correll: I am a pediatric rheumatologist in Minnesota and, up until a few years ago, our catchment area for patients was very large; we treated patients from all over Minnesota, North and South Dakota, western Wisconsin and parts of Iowa. Some patients would travel 10 or more hours to see us. I’m pleased that in my geographic area, the workforce has increased and there are now two pediatric rheumatologists in North Dakota. However, many parts of the country continue to be underserved, due to both geography and the lack of supply.
TR: For some background, how did you get into rheumatology? What in particular interested you in pediatric rheumatology?
Dr. Correll: I was always interested in immunology and how the immune system works. I had very little exposure to pediatric rheumatology in medical school and during early residency, so I did not initially consider pediatric rheumatology, but was considering a fellowship in allergy and immunology. However, in my third year of pediatrics residency, I completed a rotation in pediatric rheumatology and fell in love with the field. I loved the interesting cases involving a variety of autoimmune diseases, the thoughtfulness that rheumatologists have and the continuity of care with patients.
Mary Beth Nierengarten is a freelance medical journalist based in Minneapolis.
