Winter 2023’s Awards, Appointments & Announcements in Rheumatology

Meanwhile, Dr. Neogi’s work continues apace, as she leads large and longitudinal studies of knee OA, mentors many early stage researchers, and rigorously pursues diversity and inclusion on the Boston University medical campus.

Kimberly Trotter, MD, Receives National Medical Association Emerging Leader Award

At the annual meeting of the National Medical Association (NMA), held July 30-Aug. 3, 2022, in Atlanta, Kimberly Trotter, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Section of Rheumatology at The University of Chicago, received the Emerging Leader Award.

“I was really honored to receive this award,” she says. She was also appreciative that, by honoring her and her work with lupus, the NMA is bringing more focus to the disease.

Dr. Trotter is the co-director of the Lupus Clinic at the University of Chicago and is involved in several ongoing clinical trials. She is committed to helping change the landscape of clinical trials by increasing the participation of people of color in underserved communities. Many African Americans, who are disproportionately affected by lupus, are often hesitant to join clinical trials due to the historical trauma their communities have experienced.

To address this hesitancy, Dr. Trotter has embarked upon an intentional community outreach program, giving lectures to community groups and participating in radio spots. There can be a lag between development of lupus symptoms and actual diagnosis, she noted, so her talks—especially to Black women in whom lupus is more prevalent—focus on the signs and symptoms of the disease.

“These extra community engagements help patients feel that they are supported and getting the information they need about the disease process,” she says.

Dr. Trotter also worked with the ACR Lupus Clinical Trials Training (LuCTT) program to address the racial and ethnic disparities in clinical trial enrollment.

In the clinic with her own patients, Dr. Trotter spends initial visits establishing trust. Now eight years out of fellowship training, she recalls that she had not expected to feel a “pull toward rheumatology” during medical school at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. And during a rheumatology rotation, she found herself drawn to the diverse patient population and to the disease processes that encompass many different systems.

“One of the nice things about rheumatology is that we have the opportunity to form lasting physician-patient relationships and to form close bonds,” she says.

Gretchen Henkel is a health and medical journalist based in California.