The hospitalized patient with arthritis

Patients hospitalized with arthritis require the expertise of nurses with a solid medical and surgical background, a base upon which approaches to rheumatic disease can be developed. The nurse should play a primary role in planning a realistic and integrated schedule for meeting the patient's pharmacotherapeutic and rehabilitation needs, in reinforcing physical medicine principles and programs, and in serving as a liaison between patient and physician, patient and other health care providers, patient and family, and patient and community. The nurse is pivotal in assuring that the comprehensive care and educational needs of the patient with arthritis are met, whether hospitalized or in an out-patient setting.