AB0825 Managing systemic sclerosis: assessing the educational needs of rheumatologists

Background Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an uncommon, complex and heterogeneous condition, making it challenging to manage. Individual rheumatologists see relatively few cases and patient surveys identify numerous gaps in clinical care. There are no published data on the educational needs of rheumatologists caring for patients with SSc. We aimed to determine rheumatologists’ self-rated knowledge and learning needs. Methods Survey questions were adapted from the EULAR Recommendations for the Treatment of SSc with reference to patient-identified care gaps. The survey was conducted on paper and on SurveyMonkey (a cloud-based online survey development software program). The target audience was Ontario rheumatologists, serving a population of 13.6 million. We sought to explore self-reported knowledge, experience, attitudes and perceived barriers in caring for SSc patients. Physician demographics and preferred educational methods were also collected. Gaps between perceived and desired knowledge were calculated to identify the greatest unmet learning needs. Results One hundred and eighteen responses were received with a response rate of 54%. The greatest unmet learning needs were seen in the management of sexual dysfunction (average gap of 1.4 on a 5-point scale), pulmonary hypertension (1.1), interstitial lung disease (1.0) and gastrointestinal manifestations of the disease (1.0). The smallest learning gap concerned screening recommendations (0.7). 19% of rheumatologists agreed with the statement “Scleroderma is an untreatable disease.” Agreement with this statement was highest (33%) among rheumatologists who treat relatively small numbers 1–10 of scleroderma patients. Conclusions We have identified several unmet learning needs regarding the management of SSc among rheumatologists. These can be used to inform future educational resources and programs for rheumatologists regarding SSc and to direct further research into their needs. Disclosure of Interest None declared