Nurse-led care for the management of rheumatoid arthritis: a review of the global literature and proposed strategies for implementation in Africa and the Middle East.

Globally, increasing demand for rheumatology services has led to a greater reliance on non-physician healthcare professionals (HCPs), such as rheumatology nurse specialists, to deliver care as part of a multidisciplinary team. Across Africa and the Middle East (AfME), there remains a shortage of rheumatology HCPs, including rheumatology nurses, which presents a major challenge to the delivery of rheumatology services, and subsequently the treatment and management of conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA). To further explore the importance of nurse-led care (NLC) for patients with RA and create a set of proposed strategies for the implementation of NLC in the AfME region, we used a modified Delphi technique. A review of the global literature was conducted using the PubMed search engine, with the most relevant publications selected. The findings were summarized and presented to the author group, which was composed of representatives from different countries and HCP disciplines. The authors also drew on their knowledge of the wider literature to provide context. Overall, results suggest that NLC is associated with improved patient perceptions of RA care, and equivalent or superior clinical and cost outcomes versus physician-led care in RA disease management. Expert commentary provided by the authors gives insights into the challenges of implementing nurse-led RA care. We further report practical proposed strategies for the development and implementation of NLC for patients with RA, specifically in the AfME region. These proposed strategies aim to act as a foundation for the introduction and development of NLC programs across the AfME region.

Biosimilars in rheumatology: recommendations for regulation and use in Middle Eastern countries.

The increasing availability of biosimilar medicines in Middle Eastern regions may provide an opportunity to increase the number of rheumatology patients who have access to traditionally more expensive biologic medicines. However, as well as a lack of real-world data on the use of biosimilar medicines in practice, the availability of intended copies in the region may undermine physician confidence in prescribing legitimate biosimilar medicines. There is a need for regional recommendations for healthcare professionals to ensure that biosimilar drugs can be used safely. Therefore, a literature search was performed with the aim of providing important recommendations for the regulation and use of biosimilar medicines in the Middle East from key opinion leaders in rheumatology from the region. These recommendations focus on improving the availability of relevant real-world data, ensuring that physicians are aware of the difference between intended copies and true biosimilars and ensuring that physicians are responsible for making any prescribing and switching decisions.