United Kingdom

National Presidents Corner: BSR 2025 Wrapped: Key Wins for Health Professionals – Will Gregory 

The British Society for Rheumatology’s annual wrap‑up highlights a year of collaborative progress across clinical practice, education, research and service improvement—bringing tangible benefits to health professionals throughout the specialty. 

• Strengthening Clinical Practice

Updated national guidelines for axial spondyloarthritis, ANCA‑associated vasculitis and csDMARD prescribing are now helping teams deliver more consistent, high‑quality care, while new recommendations for foot health in inflammatory arthritis offer improved multidisciplinary support. 

Practical educational resources provide timely, real‑world support to clinicians throughout the year.  We are so pleased with our new "how to get started..." resources: with one package aimed at nurses, another at new doctors and the newest at First Contact Practitioners. These are free-to-all via https://www.rheumatologylearning.com/  

• Growing Evidence and Innovation 

Research publishing continued to expand, with Dr Mwidimi Ndosi joining Rheumatology Advances in Practice as Editor‑in‑Chief, strengthening multidisciplinary input. 

A special issue on AI showcased emerging digital tools that are beginning to influence diagnosis, treatment and research, while Rheumatology moved fully online to improve accessibility and sustainability. The first RAP mentoring scheme supported early‑career professionals to build confidence in academic publishing—an important investment in the future workforce. 

• Driving Service Improvement 

The National Early Inflammatory Autoimmune Diseases Audit reached record participation, with 96% of eligible trusts contributing data and 7,565 patients recruited—providing one of the strongest national pictures of service performance to date.  These insights helped clinicians and services make the case for local improvements and strengthened national advocacy for better rheumatology provision. 

• Growing Membership 

2025 has been a year of growth as we see more members joining the BSR from all professions and increased access to our courses and conference from all healthcare professionals. We are reaping the benefits of the 2018 decision to merge scientific and HCP societies as we see growth and meaningful input to our many BSR projects by our diverse membership. 

Croatia

National Presidents Corner: The Importance of Education of Health Professionals in Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Diseases (RMD) - Nikolino Žura, PhD, PT, Croatia

Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases (RMD) encompass a wide range of chronic and often progressive conditions that significantly affect patients’ functionality, work ability, and quality of life. Given their high prevalence and complexity, education of health professionals represents a key element of high-quality, timely, and effective care for people living with RMDs. 

Early recognition of symptoms and timely diagnosis are crucial for successful treatment and for preventing permanent damage to the musculoskeletal system. Continuous education enables health professionals to better understand disease pathophysiology, apply modern therapeutic approaches, and follow and implement the latest recommendations and guidelines. A multidisciplinary approach is particularly important, where rheumatologists, physiotherapists, nurses, and other health professionals jointly contribute to comprehensive, patient-centred care. 

In Croatia, specialised education in the field of RMDs has been systematically developed for almost two decades. At the University of Applied Health Sciences in Zagreb, where such education has been provided since 2007, a Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy module has been developed within the graduate programme in physiotherapy. This module enables students to acquire advanced theoretical knowledge and clinical skills necessary for the assessment and treatment of patients with RMDs, in line with the principles of evidence-based practice. 

To further stimulate students’ interest in rheumatology and rehabilitation, the national organisation of health professionals in rheumatology and rehabilitation, in collaboration with higher education institutions, will organise a professional symposium for students of health professions in autumn 2026. The symposium will focus on raising awareness of the importance of RMDs, presenting contemporary diagnostic and therapeutic approaches, and highlighting the role of health professionals in multidisciplinary care. 

Investment in education and professional development of health professionals is essential to ensure a sustainable, high-quality, and evidence-based healthcare system, in line with the goals and values promoted by EULAR. 

Knowledge for Health!