“What inspires me every day is the resilience of my patients,” she said in accepting the award.
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Over 700,000 people in Central Florida live with arthritis and on May 2, the Arthritis Foundation honored Dr. Neha Bhanusali, a rheumatologist at UCF Health Faculty Physician Practice, for her dedication to caring for these patients.
In addition to awards, the Foundation’s Night of Hope and Innovation gala raised money for research and expanding care for those who need care. As Dr. Bhanusali said, “Tonight’s Night of Hope and Innovation reminds us that progress happens through collaboration. Between patients, clinicians, researchers and supporters like all of you in this room.”
It’s not only adults who carry the weight of arthritis. Among the people at the gala were parents who have watched their children navigate a disease that most people assume only affects the elderly.
“Many of these conditions are invisible to other people,” Dr. Bhanusali said. “But the pain, fatigue, and uncertainty that patients experience are very real.”
Dr. Bhanusali talked about the advances in arthritis treatment during her career,
“Back when I started in training over 15 years ago, we had one, maybe two biologics.” She paused. “Not much.”
Today’s treatment options include JAK inhibitors that block specific enzymes to stop inflammation, targeted therapies and early intervention strategies. “We’re treating people much earlier, which makes a very big difference,” she said. “And we’re offering real hope for a better quality of life.”
Challenging that hope, she said, is the shortage of rheumatologists and physicians who know how to treat rheumatic conditions. In four years of medical school, she explained, students get only a few hours or days of rheumatology training.
Joining Dr. Bhanusali at the gala was Dr. Deborah German, UCF’s vice president for health affairs and founding dean of the UCF College of Medicine. Before she built the medical school and led creation of a program that that now trains over 820 residents and fellows across Florida, she was a rheumatologist.
She trained at Duke, ran their gout clinics. maintained a private practice in internal medicine and rheumatology at Vanderbilt. And while she was there, she chaired the Tennessee Board of Directors for the Arthritis Foundation.
“Our medical students are luckier than most,” Dr. Bhanusali said, “as we have a very strong rheumatology program here at UCF. And our biggest champion is our dean, who is here tonight as well, Dean German, who is actually also a rheumatologist.”
Dr. Bhanusali is board-certified in rheumatology, internal medicine and lifestyle medicine. She’s a culinary medicine faculty at the College of Medicine and has researched extensively in areas including yoga’s role in managing myositis and what dairy does to arthritic joints. She trained at Columbia Presbyterian, taught at Baylor and has volunteered as a physician overseas. .
She says those she cares for are her inspiration. “What inspires me every day is the resilience of my patients. Their strength, adaptability, and determination to keep moving forward despite all of these challenges.”
Learn more about the Arthritis Foundation’s Florida chapter and upcoming events at https://www.arthritis.org/.
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