Swiss rheumatism league
| Swiss rheumatism league | |
|---|---|
| Seat | Zurich |
| founding | 1958 |
| president | Franz Stämpfli |
| Website | www.rheumaliga.ch |
The Rheumaliga Schweiz is a non-profit association for 1.5 million people affected by rheumatism . Of these, 300,000 people with severe chronic rheumatism make up the largest group of disabled people in Switzerland. The Rheumaliga Schweiz counts 200 different diseases of the human musculoskeletal system as rheumatism, primarily osteoarthritis (joint wear), arthritis (joint inflammation), back pain , soft tissue rheumatism and osteoporosis (fragile bones).
organization
The Swiss Rheumatism League in the broader sense (overall organization) comprises all twenty partly cantonal, partly regional (two or three cantons) rheumatism players in Switzerland and their national office (umbrella organization). The overall organization also includes six national patient organizations that deal with less common rheumatic diseases: the Swiss Fibromyalgia Association, the Swiss Lupus Erythematosus Association (SLEV), the Swiss Bechterew Disease Association, the Swiss Osteogenesis Imperfecta Association, the Swiss Association of Scleroderma Affected (sclerodermie.ch) as well as the Swiss Polyarthritis Association.
In the narrower sense, the Swiss Rheumatism League is the national office based in Zurich. It was founded in 1958 and has been a member of the European Rheumatism League EULAR since 1973 . As the umbrella organization for the 26 member organizations, it performs management and coordination tasks and represents their concerns in Swiss health, social and disability policy.
activities
The Swiss Rheumatism League (overall organization) provides a wide range of services.
consultation
The association sees itself as a contact and advice center for rheumatism sufferers. Individual cantonal or regional rheumatism players offer specialized advice such as social and ergonomic advice, and the Rheumaliga Zürich is the only one to offer medical consultation hours.
information
The association develops and distributes brochures and leaflets on various rheumatism topics. There are currently 45 titles available. In 2010 a total of around 280,000 publications were submitted (mostly free). Since the Rheumaliga Schweiz communicates in three languages, almost all publications are available in a German, a French and an Italian language version. The rheumatism magazine “forumR” is published in three languages (quarterly, circulation: 35,000 copies).
Everyday help
For those affected by rheumatism who suffer from severe pain, the association has a unique range of everyday aids for body care, the kitchen, the office, etc. The aids enable and facilitate everyday activities and preserve the independence of those affected by rheumatism by protecting the joints , reduce the effort required or extend the range of motion. There are currently around 200 items on offer. Everyday aids can only be sent by post in Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein.
Exercise courses
The association has designed four exercise programs tailored to those affected by rheumatism: Active Backademy (back training), Osteogym (osteoporosis gymnastics), Aquawell (water training) and Aquacura (therapeutic water gymnastics). The exercise courses are organized and offered by the cantonal or regional rheumatism players. In 2013, over 38,300 people took part in a total of 3,726 courses organized by the Swiss Rheumatism League. The courses are led by qualified physiotherapists who receive regular further training.
Medical training
For further training of general practitioners, the association, in cooperation with the Swiss Society for Rheumatology (SGR), has been running the workshop series "Update rheumatology for primary care providers" since 1993.
financing
The association is financed to around 80% by donations, legacies, donors' contributions, sponsorship and income from services. In addition, there are public funds, namely the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG) in accordance with the Federal Rheumatism Act of 1964 (the first of its kind in Europe) and the Federal Office for Social Insurance (FSIO) in fulfillment of performance contracts Art. 74 IVG (Federal Act on the Disability insurance). As a recognized non-profit organization, the Swiss Rheumatism League bears the seal of approval from the Swiss certification body for charitable donation-collecting organizations, ZEWO .
history
The cantonal rheumatism leagues of Basel, Bern, Geneva, Vaud and Zurich formed a working group in 1955 with the aim of founding an umbrella organization. The Swiss Rheumatism League (old name) was founded in Bad Schinznach in 1958. She began editing publications and organizing rheumatological training courses for general practitioners in 1959.
In the long era of Gisela Dalvit (managing director from 1967 to 2004) a. the launch of the rheumatism magazine “forumR” (1984) and the creation of the four national exercise programs. Dalvit's enduring commitment to the promotion of children's rheumatology in Switzerland deserves special mention.
In 2003 the Swiss Rheumatism League adopted its current name. The strategy process was started under the management of Valérie Krafft (since 2005) with the main aim of establishing a basic range of services (courses, advice, information) with clear quality standards throughout Switzerland. The Swiss Rheumatism League has been involved in the Geliko Swiss Health League Conference since 2008 .
Medical orientation
Basically, the Swiss Rheumatism League is based on classic rheumatology . For lectures at public and advanced training events as well as for its publications, it draws on a pool of specialist speakers and authors who are based on conventional medicine . The Rheumaliga Schweiz advocates the use of rheumatoid drugs and explains the range of analgesics , nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs , steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs ( cortisone drugs ), basic drugs , osteoarthritis drugs (chondroprotective drugs ) and osteoporosis drugs to the lay public in a regularly updated brochure . This publication (“Drug Brochure”) contains a list of all rheumatoid drugs approved in Switzerland.
At the same time, the association is open to the perspective of complementary medicine and recommends non-conventional medical methods that prove themselves in rheumatism. The spectrum ranges from individual therapies such as cupping , osteopathy , ozone therapy , etc. to complex complementary medical teaching buildings such as those represented by anthroposophic medicine and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Against alternative medicine (which wants to replace conventional medicine), the Swiss Rheumatism League advocates a complementary interplay of conventional and complementary medical approaches. The Swiss Rheumatism League reacts to the criticism of the small number of scientific studies to prove the effectiveness of complementary medical therapies by pointing out the overarching concept of evidence-based medicine (EBM).
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original dated February 23, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Active against rheumatism, Rheumaliga Schweiz, Zurich, no year (leaflet)
- ^ Association policy of the Swiss Rheumatism League, Zurich 1999 (PDF file; 29 kB), p. 1
- ↑ "forumR", No. 2/2011, Zurich (magazine), p. 35
- ↑ List of publications Rheumaliga Schweiz, Zurich 2010 (brochure); Annual report 2010 of the Swiss Rheumatism League, Zurich 2011 (brochure), p. 6
- ↑ Little helpers, big impact. Everyday aids, Zurich 2011 (brochure)
- ↑ 2013 Annual Report of the Swiss Rheumatism League, Zurich 2014 (brochure), p. 9
- ^ Statutes of the Swiss Rheumatism League, Zurich 2009 (PDF file; 98 kB), p. 10
- ↑ Tages-Anzeiger: "Rheumaliga plans to go on the offensive" (July 2nd, 2008)
- ↑ "forumR", No. 2/2008 (anniversary edition), Zurich (magazine), p. 41
- ↑ “forumR”, No. 2/2008 (anniversary edition), Zurich (magazine), pp. 21–22
- ↑ Swiss Rheumatism League. Strategy 2008–2012, Zurich 2007 (PDF file; 150 kB), p. 6
- ↑ Medicines for rheumatic diseases, Rheumaliga Schweiz, Zurich (7th revised edition) 2010 (brochure)
- ↑ Complementary Medicine, Rheumaliga Schweiz, Zurich 2011 (brochure)
- ↑ "forumR", No. 2/2011, Zurich, p. 2 (journal)
- ↑ Complementary Medicine, Rheumaliga Schweiz, Zurich 2011 (brochure), pp. 9–10
