Expanding the Role of the Nurse Practitioner in Multiple Sclerosis to Optimize Outcomes: Early Diagnosis, Treatment Advances, and Patient-Centered Care

Target Audience
This educational initiative has been designed for nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and physicians who practice in primary care and specialty settings.

Program Overview
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a progressive, immune-mediated, neurodegenerative disease that is associated with irreversible physical disability and functional impairment. Due to its heterogeneity, treatment of patients with MS is highly individualized. The availability of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) has revolutionized the care of patients with MS and currently more than a dozen DMTs are FDA-approved, with several more undergoing late-stage clinical trials. However, with no head-to-head trials of DMTs, nurse practitioners (NPs) are dependent upon national guidelines and educational activities to stay abreast of the safety and efficacy of these agents, along with strategies for optimizing patient outcomes. In their multi-faceted roles of administrators, educators, collaborators, consultants, and advocates, NPs are able to help identify and manage relapses, symptoms, and treatment-related side effects that all can affect the course of the disease.

This educational activity will address these issues by providing NPs an overview of tools to aid in earlier identification of undiagnosed MS or disease relapse, updates on current and emerging DMTs, and strategies to optimize adherence. Application of the knowledge gained will improve outcomes for patients with MS.

Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this educational activity, participants should be able to:

Define the role of the NP in the healthcare setting, and their role in the diagnosis and treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS)
Describe how to evaluate patients for signs and symptoms of early MS or relapse, to facilitate prompt referral to specialist care
Identify available therapies for treatment of MS, and factors to consider in their use in individual patients
Characterize strategies to address patient education and adherence challenges, and the long-term monitoring of overall wellness in patients with MS