Department of Medicine

Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology

Rheumatology Education

Educational activities include the training of medical and graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. The Division has a NIH training grant that provides funding for two postdoctoral trainees and three graduate students. Trainees mentored by Division faculty include Ph.D. and MPH students as well as clinical and research fellows.

According to data from the National Health Interview Survey, approximately 11% of the population has arthritis or other rheumatic conditions. In the United States, the number of patients with arthritis is thought to exceed 60 million. The Clinical Fellowship Program is an important component of this Division’s mission, and offers trainees a unique opportunity to undergo rigorous clinical training in a strong academic environment. The clinical training program is two years in duration with an optional but strongly encouraged third year devoted to research. The consult and outpatient services are very active and clinical fellows participate in the management of patients with a wide variety of rheumatic conditions. Fellows also rotate through the Division’s clinical research units. A strength of the program is the possibility to participate in cutting-edge clinical or basic research with the Division faculty as well as faculty of collaborators based in nephrology, cardiology and endothelial biology, dental medicine, psychology, epidemiology and biostatistics. Fellows from this program have gone on to academic careers as well as careers as superbly trained clinical rheumatologists. Research Fellowships in clinical and basic immunology and genetics also are available in the laboratories of Division faculty and collaborators. Journal clubs and other teaching activities of the Clinical and Research Fellowship programs are integrated, providing fellows exposure to a diverse peer group with various interests, experiences, and viewpoints. A clinical immunology course is offered yearly to trainees in this and other Divisions. Research fellows from the Division present papers regularly at national and international meetings and have had gone on to pursue academic and scientific careers at institutions in the United States and around the world.

Patient and education programs include lectures and an increasing number of brochures published by the Arthritis Foundation or produced by faculty affiliated with the Lupus Research Center. A close link has been forged with the Florida Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation. Through the Autoimmune Disease Center, an Autoimmune Disease Update Symposium for patients and practicing physicians is planned for the spring of 2002. Continuing medical education programs include Rheumatology Grand Rounds and additional conferences that are under development.