Pamela McLain<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n The result is a long history of speakers from all corners of the world who are doing the most important work in the specialty. <\/p>\n
\u201cI realized when I went there the first time that I saw people at their meeting that I had never seen at ACR,\u201d Calabrese said. \u201cTalking to them, I realized that these are the yeomen of rheumatology. These are the people doing the work to push the field forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Calabrese described the average CCR speaker as \u201cvery sharp and very practical.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cFrom the beginning, I could see that the faculty was world class,\u201d he said. \u201cThey emphasize practical topics, the things that people in our field really want to hear about.\u201d<\/p>\n
The logistics of CCR contributes to its effectiveness, according to Lindsey. All meeting sessions are presented in one room, with all attendees seated together, eating together, and often gathering together in the common areas of the hotel in the evening.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt ACR or other national or international meetings, you might pick a couple sessions to attend, but they end up being a quarter-mile away from each other,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you are a researcher looking at specific scientific areas, ACR can be focused and productive, but for a practitioner hoping to learn how to manage a wide variety of patients in their clinic, it can be a lot harder to get the information you need. At CCR, you pick a seat, you stay there for 3 or 4 days, and all of that information comes to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The coffee breaks and community meals that are built into the program also serve a purpose. <\/p>\n
\u201cBetween sessions, you are talking about what you just learned, you are talking about specific cases with your colleagues,\u201d Lindsey said. \u201cI have learned so much at mealtimes or sitting around the pool. Then you can take this information back to your practice or your group. It is always actionable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rheum on the Beach<\/h2>\n Despite its modest beginnings, it was not long before the McLains had a broader vision for their conference. The focus on quality speakers and those actionable topics drew attention from around the Gulf region. So, in 1985, they moved their operation to Destin, Florida.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn 1985, it was suggested that we move to Destin because we might get more people coming out of the Southeast,\u201d David said. \u201cPeople would go there for vacation. We called it Rheum on the Beach.\u201d<\/p>\n
The assumption that a more attractive location would draw talent proved correct. More than 100 attendees descended on Destin from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, Florida and Tennessee during that first year, according to Pam. <\/p>\n
After a year at another resort, the second edition of Rheum on the Beach moved to the Hilton, and they have been in the same location ever since.<\/p>\n
This was when Lindsey got involved. <\/p>\n
\u201cI was running a practice in Virginia at the time and head of rheumatology for Eastern Virginia Medical School,\u201d he said. \u201cI was doing a lot of talks for different companies. I heard about this meeting in Destin, and that there would be a lot of product theaters, so that is why I went the first few years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lindsey said he was struck by both the location and the McLains. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Hilton is a great spot, right on the beach,\u201d he said. \u201cThose first meetings I went to were fairly small, but David and Pam, as you know, are very personable. They will make an effort to meet you, talk to you, make you feel comfortable.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe meeting that the McLains created was one where you could go to learn but also relax,\u201d Lindsey added. \u201cThe speakers were always great, but you could also play golf or tennis or participate in a fishing tournament. It was right on the beach, so a lot of us brought our families or partners.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although the McLains had been running the meeting since the days at Brookwood, they did not actually take over full control until 2004. At that point, they had some substantial logistical and financial decisions to make about the agenda, sponsorships and even the audio-visual set-up. Their older son, Edward, although working in IT, had AV experience running theater productions in high school, and took on the role of running the tech component of the meeting, making it a truly family affair. Meanwhile, their younger son, Richard, armed with software engineering and MBA degrees, became involved with the meeting\u2019s website and marketing. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn 2009, we changed the name from Rheumatology on the Beach to CCR,\u201d David said. \u201cPharma was changing and was more hesitant to support a meeting with \u2018beach\u2019 in the title. We wanted to emphasize how important the educational content was and extend our audience.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the name change finalized and an already established precedent of expert speakers, the McLains began to focus more attention on another key component of the CCR brand \u2014 educating the next generation of rheumatologists.<\/p>\n
\u2018Fired up\u2019 fellows<\/h2>\n The North American Young Rheumatology Investigator Forum (NYRIF) started as a rheumatology research meeting for trainees at the Southern Society for Clinical Investigation (SSCI), according to David. After bouncing between SSCI and CCR for a few years in the early 2000s \u2014 as well as a name change from the National Young Rheumatology Investigator Forum \u2014 Pam took over for good in 2010. <\/p>\n
\u201cI was really interested in the fellows\u2019 program,\u201d she said. \u201cMy father was a dentist and oral surgeon who went to the NIH, became an internationally renowned scientist, and discovered collagenase in humans. As a high school and college student, I was fortunate to be able to do voluntary research at the NIH and University of Alabama Birmingham. From that experience, I learned the importance of mentors in developing lifelong scientific and professional skills. I saw NYRIF as a way to engage fellows and prospective fellows in research, and to help mentor and encourage them.\u201d<\/p>\n
The first years of CCR had eight to 10 fellows participating, with Lindsey eventually becoming involved in running poster sessions with the trainees. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt is so satisfying to give them the opportunity to present their abstracts orally, to critique what they are doing, good and bad, to give them a learning experience that they can use for the rest of their careers,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
NYRIF\u2019s social aspects are another key component of the program. Fellows at the event gain the opportunity to network with the people who will be their colleagues throughout their careers, Lindsey said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey can find out whether they want to manage patients or do research, or who they want to go into practice with,\u201d he said. \u201cMost importantly, they are working side by side with leaders in the field. They can have conversations over coffee with Len Calabrese or Iain McInnes, the biggest names in rheumatology. The NYRIF component of CCR is really important for our trainees on so many levels.\u201d<\/p>\n
The deep history of CCR can even be found in NYRIF, according to David. <\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the first fellows to win was Alfred Kim from Washington University in St Louis,\u201d he said. \u201cHe is speaking at CCR-East and on the Panel for NYRIF for 2026. The circle of life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Calabrese, who regularly leads groups of fellows to discuss posters at CCR, characterized the McLains as \u201cpioneers\u201d in developing meeting programs and opportunities for fellows.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese fellows are fired up and excited to learn and present their research,\u201d he said. \u201cThe McLains have invested their own time and money to help offset the expenses for these trainees and young investigators to come to CCR and have these opportunities. That is such a significant commitment to our profession. It makes their meeting strong, and it makes the leaders in the field honored to keep coming back. I have spoken at this meeting for many years, and I am always flattered to be invited, and I always go out of my way to accommodate them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Westward and other expansions<\/h2>\n Despite the growth and relative success of CCR on Florida\u2019s Gulf Coast, Pam recognized they were still not serving certain populations, particularly those further west. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe just did not seem to be reaching enough rheumatologists on the West Coast,\u201d Pam said.<\/p>\n
This ultimately led to the first CCR West in 2019. This version of the annual meeting has since moved from its original home in Coronado\/San Diego to Huntington Beach, in Orange County.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to give practitioners on the West Coast the CCR experience in their back yard,\u201d Pam added.<\/p>\n
For Pam, rheumatology is personal. In her younger years, she competed in equestrian events at the Olympic level, having qualified as a candidate for the games with her horse, Co-Pilot II, despite being diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis \u2014 now known as JIA \u2014 at age 8 years. However, her health eventually caught up with her, with a diagnosis of lupus\/rhupus when she was 29 years old, after the birth of their second child. Years of steroid use for these conditions then led to glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis later in her medical career, along with joint damage. <\/p>\n
\u201cI had to give up my horses and my practice,\u201d Pam said. \u201cI could not hold instruments anymore or perform surgery, or even ride without fracturing my back. I had to give up on my dreams and what I knew as my life. I wanted to prevent this from happening to other people, and that started with educating rheumatologists on the best available, up-to-date treatments.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pam describes CCR as a \u201cmission,\u201d sometimes working 10 to 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. That work ethic kept her moving to further expand CCR\u2019s programs and reach<\/p>\n
\u201cIn 2020, we started the A & R Medical Education Foundation, to help fund our fellows more,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Additionally, CCR continues to offer virtual platforms for both of its meetings, even as many organizations have ceased their virtual components following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe think it is important to spread our message as far and wide as possible,\u201d Pam said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, for the first time this year, CCR East will feature a rheumatology-dermatology summit, with experts from each specialty providing short lectures, panel discussions, \u201cstumper sessions\u201d and audience participation, according to Pam. <\/p>\n
Amidst all this growth, the biggest names and the foremost experts will continue to return each year, not just for the education \u2014 or the sunshine \u2014 but for the McLains, according to Calabrese.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor more than 2 decades, I\u2019ve been running a very successful series of educational meetings at the Cleveland Clinic, and I\u2019m very proud of them,\u201d Calabrese said. \u201cBut I will tell you honestly that every time I come to CCR, I take away new lessons on how to successfully run and sustain such meetings that meet the needs of busy clinicians in rheumatology.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lindsey agreed. <\/p>\n
\u201cDavid and Pam have made me feel like part of the family,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is why I have been to 30 of the 41 meetings they have had, and will keep coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n
For more information:<\/h2>\n Leonard H. Calabrese, DO<\/b>, <\/b>can be reached at CALABRL@ccf.org. <\/p>\n
Stephen M. Lindsey, MD,<\/b> MACR,<\/b> <\/b>can be reached at slinds@lsuhsc.edu. <\/p>\n
David A. McLain, MD, MACR, FACP, FRCP<\/b>,<\/b> can be reached at david.mclain@gmail.com. <\/p>\n
Pamela McLain, MD, FAAD<\/b>, <\/b>can be reached at pmclain@ccrheumatology.com.<\/p>\n\n
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