Arthritis patients do better when treated by nurses rather than doctors, says new Leeds study
Patients with arthritis do better in clinics run by senior nurses compared to those run by junior doctors, according to a clinical trial carried out in Leeds.
Twice as many patients who were seen regularly in outpatients' clinics at Leeds General Infirmary by a senior rheumatology nurse improved compared to those attending junior doctors' clinics.
After 12 months they had less pain and stiffness, knew more about their condition, felt less tired, and declared themselves satisfied with their care. In comparison, patients seen in clinics run by junior doctors got worse, or stayed the same.
The study looked at two groups of patients, 80 with rheumatoid arthritis and 100 with osteoarthritis.
Dr Jackie Hill, a rheumatology nurse practitioner and lecturer at the Rheumatology and Rehabilitation Unit at Leeds University who carried out the clinical trial funded by the Arthritis Research Campaign, said: "Nurses tend to look at the patient in an holistic way, not just as a disease. We try to look at their home and social lives and how the arthritis affects them and their family members, and we talk to them at length about treatment. Junior doctors are only in post for six months, so they don't have that kind of expertise."
Dr Hill added that rheumatologists and rheumatology nurses complemented each other, with each playing important roles in the management of patients with arthritis. But she added: "These results show that appropriately trained nurses can effectively and safely manage patients with both rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, and that patients are very satisfied with the care that they receive."
Rheumatology nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists have taken on many of the technical and patient management skills once considered the sole province of the rheumatologist. They are now considered to be essential members of the rheumatology team, and their presence is becoming increasingly common, particularly in outpatients' clinics.
Dr Hill is a leading academic nurse who was awarded an ARC senior lectureship in July last year, and is a longstanding exponent of extending clinical roles for nurses in the UK.
