The ‘Decade’ and Its Mission in Bone and Joint Health

This article describes what will guide the United States Bone and Joint Decade (USBJD) in its mission over the next few years. Decade is a collaboration between many organizations and individuals dedicated to advancing education and research in musculoskeletal health and disease. The mission of the Decade is simply stated: “To promote and facilitate collaboration of organizations committed to education and research for improving bone and joint health.” The goal of the programs is to make a major contribution to eradicating the prevalence of diseases of the bones and joints. Education and research are two key objectives that are targets for advancement.

Individuals representing the Decade are clinicians, scientists, allied healthcare professionals, policy makers, patients, and members of the general public. They are experienced as educators, healthcare providers, receivers of care, researchers, and managers. Capitalizing on the strengths and talents of such a diverse but committed group of people bodes well for achieving goals that will improve quality of life for all.

Education
Improving education for the public and healthcare professionals will increase awareness of the diseases. In the case of the public, information on a particular affliction can provide the basis for better communication between patients and their doctors. It can also help in creating support groups, sharing problems and fears with family and friends, and communicating these concerns to the policy-makers in Congress, for example.

Awareness and advocacy for bettering our bone and joint health in Congress is an important point. It is through legislative and strategic changes in our healthcare system that advances can be made. For example, our representatives in Congress need to know the true burden of musculoskeletal diseases in the US—a burden that is under-recognized in terms of prevalence, effect on quality of life, and economic cost. With this information, the urgency for changes in diagnostic and therapeutic options can be recognized and then implemented. Research on cures and management of diseases can be accelerated, all leading to improved health in our later years. Programs in the Decade such as ‘Fit to a T’ and ‘Protect Your Bones & Joints’ (PB&J) are aimed at providing this type of education to the public.

Educating healthcare professionals about the burden of bone and joint diseases is another critical factor in bettering our adult years. Communication regarding the latest medical advances among those who provide our healthcare can open up avenues of prevention and therapy. Knowledge like this in the hands of a care-giver can be a powerful tool in helping patients with skeletal problems.

Education in medical schools and other allied professional schools is critical to providing the best healthcare options to those affected by musculoskeletal diseases. The Decade program that addresses this is ‘Project 100,’ an initiative to strengthen the musculoskeletal curriculum in medical schools. Formalized training in musculoskeletal health has fallen well out ofline with the prevalence of bone and joint diseases.

Another Decade program is ‘Burden of Musculoskeletal Conditions in the United States’ (BMUS), and is a cornerstone resource in making the case for increased education about and research into musculoskeletal diseases. It is a compendium of information on the burden of these conditions in the US that can be used by anyone seeking to better understand the way bone and joint conditions affect people, and the extent to which they do.