BackgroundShared decision making, a cornerstone of RA management1, allows physicians and their patients to make informed decisions about their treatment goals and choice of care. As new treatments become available, it is important to understand rheumatologists’ reasons for choosing JAKi.ObjectivesThis survey evaluated rheumatologists’ clinical and patient centric reasons for choosing JAKi, in addition to exploring alignment between rheumatologists and RA patients in terms of treatment choice and satisfaction.MethodsThe Adelphi RA Disease Specific Programme™2 is a large, multinational, point-in-time survey conducted amongst rheumatologists and their consulting patients with RA in Europe (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK) between January and October 2020. Physicians completed record forms for up to 10 consecutive RA patients, collecting demographic, clinical and treatment data, and reasons for current treatment choice. Patients were invited to complete a patient questionnaire to assess their satisfaction with ongoing treatment (5-point scale), and perceptions of shared decision making for the current treatment.Results316 rheumatologists provided data for 3121 patients, of whom 1130 (36.2%) completed patient reported questionnaires. Overall, 67% were female, mean age was 53 years (SD 14), 23% had moderate-high disease activity score (DAS28: >3.2). 68% of patients were currently receiving either a biologic or targeted synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD; defined here as advanced therapy, AT), 72% were on first line AT. Overall, physicians and their patients were aligned that a conversation took place about a treatment decision (n=855, 79% net alignment), and this was a shared treatment decision (n=814, 75% net alignment). 15% of patients not taking an AT were reported to have a clinical condition warranting one; reasons for not taking AT included patients’ concerns about infection (24%), conventional synthetic DMARDs were tolerable and safe in the patient (18%), and patient dislike of infusions/injections (17%). Of 2143 patients receiving AT, 19% were prescribed JAKi; 57% as monotherapy, 43% as combination therapy. For physician stated reasons for choice of JAKi, factors were driven by both perceptions of clinical efficacy and onset of action, as well as factors relating to patient acceptability such as method of delivery and ease of use (Table 1). With respect to JAKi treatment (n=135 patient-physician pairs), 62% of physicians and their patients were aligned on satisfaction, however 30% of patients reported less satisfaction than their consulting physician (Figure 1).Table 1.Physician stated clinical and patient centric reasons for prescribing a JAKi in their patients with RA (data are percentage of patients; n=397)Reasons for prescribing JAKiPatients (%)Top 5 clinical reasonsStrong overall efficacy74Fast onset of action49Inhibition of disease progression42Strong efficacy as monotherapy39Achievement of clinical remission37Top 5 patient centric reasonsAcceptability of method of delivery for the patient39Enabling patient to perform everyday tasks/activities36Ease of product use (for the patient)33Improvement or maintenance of quality of life30Improving patient’s mood/state of mind14ConclusionCommunicating the choice of pharmacological therapy to patients with RA has become increasingly complex for physicians with expansion of approved treatments. In this subgroup of patients on JAKi, the drug attributes considered as reasons for prescribing were driven by clinical factors as well as by patient centric attributes. Although communications between patients and physicians were largely aligned, better understanding of patient expectations might serve to improve messaging about treatment options and resulting satisfaction.