Rheumatology services in Aotearoa New Zealand-do they meet Arthritis New Zealand/New Zealand Rheumatology Association-endorsed service standards?

Aims: To describe Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora rheumatology services across Aotearoa New Zealand using the Arthritis New Zealand/New Zealand Rheumatology Association-endorsed rheumatology service standards.

Methods: Descriptive study with data collection by survey from clinical service leads from all 16 Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora rheumatology services.

Results: Response rate was 100%. No services met all the service standards. Staffing of rheumatologists approached the standards in only three services, and nursing staffing was well below the standards in all services, with two services not employing any nurses. Where nurses were employed, nursing services standards were largely met. Five services did not provide inpatient consultations. Almost all services had access to conventional imaging modalities, but less than half of services provided point-of-care ultrasounds or had access to fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET). Most services were able to make referrals to physiotherapy, occupational therapy and hand therapy. Ability of services to meet care standards for the care of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was variable. Between 2023 and 2025, two services had a substantive increase in rheumatologist staffing and two had a substantive increase in nursing staffing.

Conclusion: This first national-level description of all Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora rheumatology services found considerable heterogeneity, and generally services did not meet all services standards.