Our division is dedicated to excellence in patient care, education, and research in pediatric rheumatology. Our mission is to improve the care for children with rheumatic disease through clinical excellence, outreach, quality improvement, and discovery while training physicians and scientists for the essential ongoing work in all these areas.  We are home to a diverse group of physicians whose professional interests span across multiple areas of pediatric rheumatology:

Our division actively collaborates with the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) and the Pediatric Rheumatology Collaborative Study Group (PRCSG) in research for multiple rheumatic diseases. We have active clinical research programs in systemic lupus and medication adherence and musculoskeletal pain. We also have active quality improvement initiatives in juvenile idiopathic arthritis, lupus, mental health, and transition care. Dr. Anna Patrick is establishing a program in improving the understanding of lymphocytes in juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Education and training are critical components of our mission. We are active in the education of medical students, residents, and fellows. We have had 10 residents enter training programs in pediatric rheumatology since 2013. We currently have three fellows, including a combined fellow in Medicine and Pediatrics. The division has received grant funding from the Arthritis Foundation and the Rheumatology Research Foundation specifically in the last two years that significantly helps to fund ongoing trainees with the ongoing goal of addressing the shortage of pediatric rheumatologists, particularly in some areas of the country.

The division has regular clinics in eight locations spanning as far east as Knoxville and as far west as Jackson. Given the rarity of pediatric rheumatologists, we believe this outreach is critical to our mission of providing the best care to children in need by improving accessibility.

I invite you to learn more about the division through our website and contact us regarding opportunities for education, training, and collaborations.

Best regards,

T. Brent Graham, MD
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Division Director, Pediatric Rheumatology
Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt