Rate My Professor Jo Robson

Dr Jo Robson is an Associate Professor in Rheumatology in the Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences at the University of the West of England (UWE), Bristol. She also holds the position of Consultant Rheumatologist at the Bristol Royal Infirmary. Her qualifications comprise MBBS, BSc (Hons), PhD, and FRCP. Robson's research and clinical practice specialize in systemic vasculitides, particularly ANCA-associated vasculitis and giant cell arteritis. She concentrates on patient-focused research, developing patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) and assessing health-related quality of life in rare rheumatic diseases, including connective tissue diseases. As a member of the UWE Musculoskeletal Management Behaviour Change and Outcomes (MAMBO) research group, her efforts have attracted funding from the NIHR Research for Patient Benefit programme, University Hospitals Bristol and Weston Above and Beyond, and Vifor Pharma.

Robson leads the international development of the AAV-PRO for ANCA-associated vasculitis, translated into 14 languages and embedded in clinical registries and trials; the GCA-PRO for giant cell arteritis; and the Steroid-PRO for glucocorticoid impact via the OMERACT Glucocorticoid Impact Working Group. She chairs the steering committee of the American College of Rheumatology/European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (ACR/EULAR) Diagnostic and Classification Criteria for Primary Systemic Vasculitis (DCVAS) study, serves on the UK and Ireland Vasculitis Service (UKIVAS) registry steering committee, and is a member of the European Vasculitis Society (EUVAS). With over 90 publications garnering more than 2,200 citations, notable works include 'Introduction, epidemiology and classification of vasculitis' (2018, Best Practice & Research Clinical Rheumatology), 'Health-related quality of life in ANCA-associated vasculitis and item generation for a disease-specific patient-reported outcome measure' (2017, Rheumatology), 'Validation of the ANCA-associated vasculitis patient-reported outcomes (AAV-PRO) questionnaire' (2018), 'Quality standards for the care of people with giant cell arteritis in secondary care' (2023, Rheumatology), and 'Relapse after cessation of weekly tocilizumab for giant cell arteritis: a multicentre service evaluation in England' (2023). Her contributions significantly influence clinical standards and research in rheumatology.