State Plan
Executive Summary

Arthritis is a word used to describe many different conditions related to chronic joint symptoms, connective tissue disorders, and other rheumatic conditions. As a technical term, arthritis is defined as inflammation of the joint or joints. For the purposes of this document, “Arthritis in Kansas”, arthritis will be operationally defined as chronic joint symptoms and/or doctor-diagnosed arthritis.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), arthritis is the leading cause of disability and affects an estimated 70 million Americans. The CDC expects that number to dramatically rise by 2020 as “baby boomers” age. Approximately 300,000 children under the age of 16 have arthritis (American Juvenile Arthritis Association). Approximately 686,000 Kansans have some form of chronic joint disease or rheumatic disease (2001 Kansas Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System), including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, juvenile arthritis, lupus, and gout, and other connective tissue diseases.

The ACT’s (Arthritis Community Taskforce) overarching goal is to improve the quality of life among Kansans with arthritis. This goal was created to encompass the many facets of addressing this chronic disease. Reaching this goal over the next several years will entail the collaboration of state and local partnerships, health care professionals and the general public. With that in mind, the ACT developed objectives and strategies to begin the process of developing a public and private partnership to address arthritis in Kansas. These objectives and strategies fall into three main categories: 1) Awareness; 2) Community-based Interventions, and 3) Evaluation/Surveillance.

Awareness

The ACT agreed a greater awareness of arthritis and its impact on those who have it should be increased within the general public. The adaptation of CDC arthritis awareness materials for Kansas should address, committee members agreed, the following areas:

1) The negative physical and psychological impacts of arthritis; 2) the availability of self-management services available to Kansans with arthritis; and 3) the benefits of physical activity to self-manage arthritis.

The committee members also agreed that identifying and documenting evidence-based arthritis interventions is necessary to assess what services currently exist for Kansans with arthritis. With this information in hand, the committee plans to create a resource guide that identifies physical activity and other self-management programs available in the state.

Community-Based Interventions

The ACT agreed that programs provided and coalitions created on the community level would have the greatest chance for success. The committee supports the expansion of evidence-based self-management activities (i.e, Arthritis Foundation Aquatics, Exercise and Self-Help Programs) into Kansas counties that currently do not have these programs. Taskforce members recommended the creation of two pilot projects, one urban and one rural. These pilots would provide the “testing ground” for getting key stakeholders to begin working together to address arthritis in their community. If these pilots are successful, they will be replicated in other Kansas communities.

Evaluation/Surveillance

Evaluation of efficacy of physical activity programs as they relate to arthritis will continue through partnerships with the state’s universities. Researchers from the Kansas State University Department of Kinesiology and Office of Community Health will continue to study the physical, psychological, and social efficacy of physical activity interventions for the self-management of arthritis. In addition, other health professionals will be asked to conduct studies on the economic impact arthritis and related conditions have on the state’s economy. This information will be useful to Kansas employers to gain a better understanding of arthritis-related diseases and how they affect productivity.

Arthritis and chronic joint symptom questions were asked during the 1996 and 2000 Kansas BRFSS survey years. The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) is a state-based telephone survey designed to measure health status and health risks in the population. The BRFSS is conducted in every state and several U.S. territories, and now, with more than 200,000 respondents annually, is the world's largest telephone survey. Committee members agreed that arthritis/chronic joint symptom questions should continue to be asked in future survey years.

Arthritis in Kansas State Plan (.pdf)