ABOUT US
Arthritis Health Associates, PLLC (AHA) has been providing outstanding rheumatological care to the greater Central New York area for several decades. AHA, a private practice, is located in the Widewaters business park. We specialize in providing health care for patients with arthritis and rheumatic disease; illnesses that can cause inflammation (redness, swelling and pain) and degeneration of joints and surrounding structure. In addition to providing services at our Widewaters Parkway location, our physicians provide in-patient hospital consultations when requested by other area physicians.
Our team of highly-qualified physicians are board certified in Rheumatology and are dedicated to helping relieve your joint pain. Our outstanding provider team works with over 60 qualified professionals to facilitate over 60,000 patients visits every year. Your Physician can schedule an apptointment with us today and let us formulate an effective treatment plan tailored to meet your individual health care needs.
TEAM STRUCTURE OF CARE AT AHA
A chronic shortage of rheumatologists exists throughout the US. In most practices waiting times for a new patient to see a rheumatologist is two (2) to six (6) months, and many rheumatologists struggle to meet the needs for follow-up care of existing patients. The shortage is projected to worsen over the next 20 years. The American College of Rheumatology has recommended the integration of Nurse Practitioners (NP) and Physician Assistants (PA) as an important way to address this shortage and extend the ability of qualified rheumatologists to meet the demands for specialty care within their communities. As a result, AHA has created teams wherein physicians and skillfully trained and supervised NP/PAs work in a coordinated fashion to see patients in a timely manner and reduce the risk of complications or delay. The expanded physician schedules provided by the NP/PAs have successfully reduced wait times substantially, while maintaining the capacity for personalized care.
The value of this integrated model of scheduling with the rheumatologist and NP/PAs means that when someone calls for an appointment a visit can be provided with a minimum delay. To maintain the success of this strategy, patients will typically see the NP/PA intermittently through the course of care. On any visit, if necessary, patients may be seen by both the rheumatologist and NP/PA.
Therefore, as a policy at AHA, patients are discouraged from insisting on seeing only the physician as this may result in delays and inefficiency in scheduling needed care.
Click here for more information on the roles of NP/PAs within our office.
