ArticleFrontiers in medicine2026
Rheumatology specialist care in Europe: workforce trends and regional variations from a UEMS survey (European Union of medical specialists).
Article in Frontiers in medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: The demand for rheumatologic specialist care is rising across Europe, driven by aging populations, earlier diagnoses, and increasingly complex treatment regimens as well as increased complexity of patients, e.g., multi-morbidity. At the same time, the speciality faces growing workforce shortages. This study aims to provide a first cross-national snapshot of rheumatology workforce supply and care structures in Europe. Methods: A structured questionnaire was distributed to the members of the Section of Rheumatology of the UEMS (Union Européenne des Médecins Spécialistes). The survey, conducted in 2021 and updated in 2023, assessed specialist numbers, work allocation, care settings, and consultation patterns across 17 European countries. Results: Data from 24 respondents representing 17 countries revealed substantial differences in rheumatology care organization. While some countries rely predominantly on hospital outpatient clinics, others favor private practice models. The number of rheumatologists ranged from 0.7 to 5.1 per 100,000 inhabitants, with marked variation in full-time equivalents (FTEs), part-time work, and gender distribution. Non-clinical duties such as administration, teaching, and research consume up to 40% of working time in some settings. Non-inflammatory musculoskeletal conditions account for approximately 23% of rheumatology consultations, though their management varies widely between countries. Conclusion: This survey underscores the heterogeneity of rheumatologic care across Europe, both in workforce availability and in healthcare delivery models. The data highlight the need for context-specific workforce planning and serve as a preliminary contribution to the broader EULAR initiative "RheumaFacts," which aims to establish a standardized, comparative database on rheumatology workforce, demand, and need.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.