EventPartnershipTraining Vasculitis Fellows receive unique training opportunity at Imperial BRC

NIHR Imperial BRC researcher Professor Justin Mason recently hosted the British Society for Rheumatology (BSR) Rare Disease Fellowship in Vasculitis at Imperial’s National Heart and Lung Institute (NHLI).

Professor Mason leads the Vasculitis research programme in the BRC Immunology Theme, and following his Heberden Oration keynote speech at the BSR annual general meeting in May, was invited to host the 2018 Rare Disease Fellowship.

The Fellowship aims to train, inspire and assist Fellows in the development of specialist vasculitis services at their own hospitals, ultimately to the benefit of patients with these rare and severe vascular diseases. For 3 days in November, five Fellows from across the UK attended NHLI to receive specialist hands-on clinical training in the management of vasculitis at the nationally-recognised Hammersmith Hospital Vasculitis Centre. The Fellows had the opportunity to experience the all-day small and large vessel vasculitis clinics, attend renal biopsy and peri-aortitis multidisciplinary team meetings and received a tutorial programme covering all aspects of state-of-the-art research and clinical care of the vasculitides.

The programme was delivered by members of the Immunology Theme and Fellows heard lectures from Professors Dorian Haskard and Charles Pusey, as well as a review of specialist commissioning from Dr Peter Lanyon, former BSR president and National Clinical Co-Lead for Rheumatology, GIRFT Programme, NHS Improvement. Speaking about the event, Dr Lanyon said ‘I would like to thank you and all the team at Imperial for the extraordinary training opportunity that you have provided. We are all very reliant on the clinical wisdom of colleagues who have carefully observed, treated, researched and reported, and then shared their expertise with colleagues’.

Professor Mason added ‘It was a pleasure for us to host the BSR Fellows. The three days highlighted the educational opportunities we can offer at Imperial, underpinned by the multi-disciplinary clinical strengths in vasculitis and the research programme supported by the BRC Immunology Theme. Inspired by the BSR Fellowship we are already planning a similar event in 2019’.