Clinician and Patient Views About Self-Management Support in Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional UK Survey

To establish receipt and provision of self-management support for patients with inflammatory arthritis in the UK, and to establish whether receipt of self-management support is associated with patient's knowledge, skills, and confidence to self-manage.

Questionnaires for patients and health care professionals were sent to members and associates of the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society. Patients completed the Patient Activation Measure (PAM), and questions about receipt of self-management support. Health care professionals completed the Clinician Support PAM and questions about provision of self-management support.

A total of 886 patients and 117 health care professionals completed the survey. Only 15% of patients had attended a structured self-management program. More than half of the patients reported having the skills, confidence, and knowledge to self-manage, and this skill set was associated with receipt of self-management support that was embedded in routine care. All health care professionals felt that patients should be actively involved in their own care, but 60% were unable to offer structured self-management support. Health care professionals reported engaging in more embedded self-management support than patients reported receiving in routine care.

Only a small proportion of patients with arthritis have attended a structured support program. Although health care professionals report engaging in self-management support embedded in routine care, patients do not necessarily agree, and these differences could impact the experience of patients with arthritis. When embedded self-management support does occur, it is a significant predictor of patients' knowledge, skills, and confidence to self-manage, as opposed to attendance at a structured program.