Why
join the project

If you join the RIR network, you can benefit from these advantages:

• a full medical and treatment report, drawn up in accordance with international recommendations,
• additional medical opinions, if required, from specialised physicians with sound knowledge of rheumatic IMIDs,
• a treatment plan including all the latest international recommendations,
• if you have risk factors, there will be a medication check with a clinical pharmacist before the first administration of your treatment to prevent interactions between your existing medication and the drugs you are due to receive for your rheumatic IMID, and to ensure there are no incompatibilities between the treatment prescribed by your RIR physician and your other health problems,
• a maximum of 10 hours’ therapeutic education to provide you with information about your disease and its treatment, and to allow you to manage your care and spot any complications,
• a systematic follow-up session with a doctor and nurse, at least twice a year, including regular assessments and measurements of key parameters, as well as lab tests and additional examinations if required,
• monitoring of undesirable outcomes that may arise after the administration of medications used to treat your rheumatic IMID, and the reporting of these events to the competent authorities,
• case management of your treatment pathway, by a nurse trained in this type of disease,
• access to consultations for complex cases if your situation requires it, with a university professor practising abroad, in order to obtain his (her) opinion on the best treatment to offer you,
• the opportunity to access clinical studies, if your situation meets the access criteria,
• regular reports to your general practitioner so that he (she) has full information about your disease and treatment and can better handle your requests in relation to any other health issues,
• a reference document about your disease and treatment will be given to you by the RIR physician treating you. You can refer to this if necessary when abroad, or if your usual doctor is unavailable and you need to consult a colleague,
• access to other healthcare professionals (occupational therapists, physiotherapists, dieticians, social workers or psychologists) trained in the management of rheumatic IMIDs, in order to help you manage the effects of your disease,
• documentation about your disease, the possible complications of your treatment, and what to do if you experience problems, including the numbers to call,
• a link to the RIR assessment report, which is published annually and made available to the public.