PH
Doctor
At this year's Sixth International PH Conference, PHA launched
PH Doctor. This new section of PHA is for physicians, as well
as MD / PhD-level researchers interested in PH. Since its
inception in June, over 2,500 physicians have been invited
to join, and membership is expected to increase to over 200
in 2005. PH Doctor was started with two important goals in
mind: to educate physicians with less PH experience by offering
a variety of resources and providing a forum for exchange
with more experienced PH treating physicians; and to facilitate
the exchange of information between PH experts by creating
a network of professionals who can work together to advance
research and improve understanding of this illness. By taking
advantage of the resources and opportunities provided by PHA,
members of PH Doctor will have the chance to deepen their
knowledge of this illness and to be a part of a growing community
of dedicated PH treating physicians.
PH Resource Network
PH Resource Network was started in 1999 as a way to build
a network between non-MD medical professionals who work with
PH patients. Since its inception, membership has grown to
192 and is expected to exceed 250 by the end of 2005. At this
year's PHA conference, the PH Resource Network held a successful
educational session attended by over 80 health professionals.
In addition to organizing their own educational
session and attending many others, PH Resource Network members
revised their governance structure and elected a new Chair,
Natalie Kitterman, R.N. To promote exchange of information,
a seat was created for the PH Resource Network Chair on PHA’s
Board of Trustees and the Scientific Leadership Council.
Through its active listserv and the promotion of conference
calls and online web chats, the PH Resource Network hopes
to increase communication and exchange of knowledge among
members in 2005. PH Resource Network membership will be promoted
at medical conferences, through encouraging patients to speak
to their healthcare providers, and by networking with hospitals
that care for PH patients.
Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension
PHA's medical journal, Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension continues
to build influence and awareness about PH both on a national
and international level. The journal is mailed quarterly to
all 31,000 cardiologists, pulmonologists, and rheumatologists
in the United States; is distributed at medical meetings;
and has a growing international mailing list of over 300.
Each issue is also available to the public online.
During Conference, the editorial board reached
consensus that editorial leadership would rotate every two
years, with a new editor-in chief elected during the biennial
Conference. Current Editor-in-Chief Victor Tapson, M.D., Associate
Professor of Medicine at Duke University Medical Center, has
led the development of the journal and will be succeeded in
2005 by Valerie McLaughlin, M.D., Director of the Pulmonary
Hypertension Program at the University of Michigan Health
System.
Under Tapson's leadership and with the contribution
of numerous leading PH physicians, the journal continues to
be the leading source of medical information on PH. In 2004,
each issue had a distinct focus including lung transplantation,
portopulmonary hypertension, and reports from PHA’s
Sixth International PH Conference.
ACCP Guidelines
In
2003, the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) began
working with physicians to develop guidelines for the diagnosis
and management of pulmonary arterial hypertension. Many of
the physicians who worked on the guidelines are also members
of PHA's Scientific Leadership Council. PHA President Rino
Aldrighetti was invited to serve as the only non-MD member
of the group.
In July 2004, the guidelines were published
and since then have been widely requested by physicians, nurses,
and PH patients. The publication of the guidelines marks an
important step in developing a consensus on how to broadly
treat PH and also shows the great progress in research since
the founding of PHA in 1990, when virtually no treatments
were available for this illness.
Creation of Medical Programming
Despite increased awareness among physicians, pulmonary hypertension
continues to be an under-diagnosed illness. Because more treatments
are now available and survival rates increase with earlier
diagnoses, it is a top priority of PHA to foster peer education
of physicians regarding detection, diagnosis, and treatment
of PH.
In August 2004, PHA was awarded a grant from
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to produce
an educational DVD for physicians that focuses on diagnosis
of pulmonary hypertension. This important educational step
is currently in the outline stage, where it is receiving input
and direction from members of the Scientific Leadership Council.
Production and distribution to physicians will take place
in 2005.
In addition to the DVD, PHA plans to create
programming on a series of PH-related topics that will be
sent to physicians on a regular basis.
Currently, DVDs of presentations from the Scientific
Sessions at the 2004 PHA Conference are in production. Over
1,500 doctors and nurses worldwide will each receive a total
of eight DVDs in the fourth quarter of 2004 and early 2005.
As PHA continues to educate health professionals by developing
and distributing up-to-date, accurate medical resources, more
PH patients can be expected to survive longer and lead richer,
fuller lives.
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