Barriers to participating in educational offerings
| Variables | All HPR | HPR in adult care | HPR in paediatric care | P value |
| I am NOT aware of EULAR educational offerings, mean (±SD) | 3.30 (±1.49) | 3.30 (±1.49) | 3.39 (±1.52) | 0.690 |
| I am NOT interested in EULAR educational offerings, mean (±SD) | 1.86 (±1.13) | 1.85 (±1.11) | 2.04 (±1.40) | 0.420 |
| The costs for EULAR annual congress are too high (course, travel accommodation; congress fee HPR=185 €–265 €), mean (±SD) | 3.46 (±1.34) | 3.44 (±1.35) | 3.69 (±1.28) | 0.299 |
| The costs for EULAR online course for HPR are too high (course fee 150 €–200 €), mean (±SD) | 3.29 (±1.36) | 3.28 (±1.37) | 3.47 (±1.28) | 0.407 |
| Lack of time/getting no opportunity for EULAR online course at work, mean (±SD) | 3.32 (±1.39) | 3.31 (±1.38) | 3.42 (±1.55) | 0.622 |
| Lack of time for EULAR online course during free time/leisure time, mean (±SD) | 3.04 (±1.38) | 3.04 (±1.37) | 3.03 (±1.54) | 0.967 |
| Lack of support from rheumatologist(s) for participation in an EULAR online course, mean (±SD) | 2.55 (±1.36) | 2.55 (±1.37) | 2.42 (±1.18) | 0.632 |
| Lack of support from managerial staff for EULAR online course, mean (±SD) | 2.63 (±1.43) | 2.62 (±1.44) | 2.73 (±1.28) | 0.680 |
| Lack of mastering the English language, mean (±SD) | 2.61 (±1.49) | 2.59 (±1.50) | 2.80 (±1.34) | 0.398 |
| Unavailability of computers, laptops or tablets for online offerings, mean (±SD) | 1.51 (±0.99) | 1.51 (±1.00) | 1.44 (±0.86) | 0.689 |
| Lack of internet connection needed to follow the EULAR online course, mean (±SD) | 1.50 (±0.98) | 1.51 (±0.98) | 1.41 (±0.92) | 0.580 |
| Content of offerings does not match with the educational needs of HPR in my country, mean (±SD) | 2.29 (±1.15) | 2.27 (±1.14) | 2.65 (±1.35) | 0.095 |
| The level of the ESOR offerings does not match with my knowledge (too low or too advanced courses), mean (±SD) | 2.17 (±1.09) | 2.18 (±1.10) | 2.03 (±0.93) | 0.481 |
| I do not know what the content of the offerings is, mean (±SD) | 3.51 (±1.50) | 3.48 (±1.50) | 3.92 (±1.46) | 0.095 |
| Educational offerings are not accredited by the national professional organisation, mean (±SD) | 2.53 (±1.49) | 2.53 (±1.49) | 2.54 (±1.53) | 0.960 |
| Lack of motivation; taking part in education has no expected benefit for an HPR in my country, for example, due to lack of career perspective, mean (±SD) | 2.28 (±1.32) | 2.27 (±1.31) | 2.34 (±1.45) | 0.769 |
| I can do the same offerings in my own country, therefore do not need offerings from EULAR, mean (±SD) | 2.07 (±1.18) | 2.08 (±1.19) | 1.84 (±1.01) | 0.386 |
| Overall mean | 2.58 (±0.65) | 2.53 (±0.64) | 2.65 (±0.76) |
Data are presented separately for HPR in adult and paediatric care. Educational needs were asked on a Likert scale (1=no barrier, 5=major barrier) and reported using mean (SD) values.
EULAR, European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology; HPR, health professionals in rheumatology.