The ARHP Honors Health Professionals for their Contributions to Rheumatology

Arntsen joined ARHP in 2003 and was the 2007 recipient of ARHP’s Ann Kunkel Advocacy Award. She has testified before Congress, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and multiple state legislative bodies. She is passionate about ensuring that all Americans have access to affordable and appropriate medical care.

“We can’t just focus on a cure, we must also teach people to live with their disease and manage it,” she says. “I think it is also very important for every American to understand they have a voice and they can’t just sit there and debate whether they should participate. I always tell people to turn your outrage into action, and turn your emotion into motion.”

Q: How does being both an advocate and a patient help you?

A: First and foremost, I have to wear many hats. But I am a patient and I have to put myself first, my health first. Everything I do has to be scheduled around my medical appointments, tests, and rest, etc. As a patient, I know firsthand what needs to be improved, and being an advocate fills a void in my life. I know that what I am doing what I was meant to do by being an advocate.

Q: You say access and affordability issues are priority, especially with the U.S.’s aging population. Why is that so important?

A: Access issues really are about someone else dictating your healthcare. If that doesn’t make the average American angry, I don’t know what would propel them to take action. The only people making decisions about people with health issues should be healthcare providers that are most familiar with that patient’s individual situation. It should not be Congress. It should not be public policy officials. It should not be insurance claims processors. It should be between patient and provider, period.

Q: What do you foresee for the future for autoimmune diseases?

A: I see about 14 specialists regularly. I wish I had one or two specialists who managed my multiple autoimmune conditions. I wish we had patient-centered healthcare that addressed special, individualized treatment. We have a few centers in this country, including Johns Hopkins, but getting the funding and changing old-school mindsets and the way we teach healthcare providers in this country needs to be reformed.

ARHP Distinguished Scholar Award

Elena Losina, PhD
Co-Director of Orthopedic and Arthritis Center for Outcomes Research (ORACORe), Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery, Harvard Medical School, Boston