Q1. You are…	A patient with rheumatic disease A health care professional – go to end of questionnaire Other – go to end of questionnaire
Q2. You are…	A man A woman
Q3. Your age…	Below 20 20–29 30–39 40–49 50–59 60 or older
Q4. Your employment status…	Employed (full time or part time) Self-employed Retired Student Unemployed (otherwise) Disabled Other
Q5. Which kind of rheumatic disease are you suffering from?	Rheumatoid arthritis Arthrosis Ankylosing spondylitis Juvenile arthritis Fibromyalgia Psoriasis arthritis Another type of rheumatic disease. Please specify:
Q6. How would you rate the degree of severity of your rheumatic disease?	Very low Low Moderate Severe Very severe
Q7. How long have you been suffering from your rheumatic disease?	Less than one year 1–3 years 3–5 years 5–10 years More than 10 years
Q8. What was your age at onset of the rheumatic disease?	19 or younger 20–29 30–39 40–49 50–59 60 or older
Q9. How would you describe your general health status?	Excellent Very good Good Reasonable Bad
Q10. Considering the impact of rheumatic disease on your life, how are you doing?	Very good Rather good Rather bad Very bad
Q11. How would you rate your quality of life today?	Excellent Very good Good Reasonable Bad
Q12. How would you rate the level of pain in the last month due to your rheumatic disease?	No pain Very low Low Moderate Severe Very severe
Q13. In the last month, how strongly was your normal work (in- and outside the home) affected by your physical health?	Not at all Somewhat Moderately Rather strongly Very strongly
Q14. In the last month, how often did you suffer from emotional problems (eg, depressive or anxious moods) as a consequence of your rheumatic disease?	All the time Most of the time Sometimes Seldom Not at all
Q15. During the last month, how strongly were your social activities with family members, friends or neighbors affected by your physical health or emotional problems?	Not at all Somewhat Moderately Rather strongly Very strongly
Q16. Would you tell us how much you were affected by your rheumatic disease during your normal daily activities? Are you able to…
Go to bed and get up independently	Without any effort With some effort With a lot of effort Unable
Dress yourself, including tie shoes and button a shirt	Without any effort With some effort With a lot of effort Unable
Walk outside (on level ground)	Without any effort With some effort With a lot of effort Unable
Run errands/go shopping	Without any effort With some effort With a lot of effort Unable
Get in and out of a car	Without any effort With some effort With a lot of effort Unable
Drive a car	Without any effort With some effort With a lot of effort Unable
Do housework, such as vacuum cleaning or sweeping	Without any effort With some effort With a lot of effort Unable
Q17. To what extent do you depend on…
Your partner	Very much More or less Not at all Not applicable
Family, friends, etc	Very much More or less Not at all Not applicable
Nurse/caregiver	Very much More or less Not at all Not applicable
Other medical specialist staff	Very much More or less Not at all Not applicable
Q18. The following questions are referring to your activities during a typical day. Is your health status limiting you in any way, and if yes, to what extent?
Exhausting activities, such as running, heavy lifting	Strongly restricted Somewhat restricted Not restricted at all
Moderately exhausting activities, such as vacuum cleaning	Strongly restricted Somewhat restricted Not restricted at all
Lifting or carrying shopping bags	Strongly restricted Somewhat restricted Not restricted at all
Going up some stairs	Strongly restricted Somewhat restricted Not restricted at all
Walking a few hundred meters	Strongly restricted Somewhat restricted Not restricted at all
Taking a bath by yourself	Strongly restricted Somewhat restricted Not restricted at all
Using hands/fingers (for writing, tying shoes)	Strongly restricted Somewhat restricted Not restricted at all
Q19. For me it is important…
To be independent from other people	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To go to work or restart working as soon as possible	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To participate in normal social activities with family members and friends	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To manage household activities	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To drive a car by myself	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To run errands	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To do exercise (sports), to be active	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To be mobile inside and outside home	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
To do recreational activities with my children	Very important More or less important Not that important Not important at all Not applicable
Q20. Which medicine are you using to control your disease?	Analgesics (painkillers) Non-steroidal anti-rheumatics (NSARs) Synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) (eg, methotrexate) Corticosteroids Biologic therapies (like anti-TNF) Other
Q21. How satisfied are you with your current therapy?	Very satisfied Satisfied Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied Dissatisfied Not satisfied at all
Q22. To what extent were you involved in the choice of your therapy/drug?	Not at all Just a little Somewhat Very much
Q23. The goal of the therapy is to help you maintain your lifestyle, to reduce pain in the joints, to slow down the joint damage and to avoid disability. Considering these aspects, how would you rate the efficacy of your current therapy?	Improved my condition dramatically Improved my condition remarkably Has improved it somewhat Did not make any difference Deteriorated it a little bit Deteriorated my condition remarkably Deteriorated my condition dramatically
Q24. How would you describe the side effects of your current medication?	There are none There are some side effects which do not really bother me There are some side effects which occasionally interfere with my daily activities Many side effects which frequently interfere with my daily activities The side effects are difficult to bear The side effects are intolerable
Q25. Imagine what the ideal treatment would look like for you. Then check how you would rate the following aspects using a scale from “very important” to “unimportant”.
Fast relief of symptoms (< 1 week)	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Sustained positive results (>1 year)	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Easy handling of therapy (eg, comfort, patient friendly packaging, etc)	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Fast signs of improvement (< 2 days)	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Absence of side effects (maybe: as little as possible or no side effects)	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Low dose of the drug	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
No loss of efficacy over time	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
No skin reaction at the injection site	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Type of administration (path of application)	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Treatment costs	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
No need to increase the dose in the future	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Easy self-administration	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
No need to go to hospital	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Needs to be taken or used rarely (eg, fewer injections required)	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Q26. What type of treatment would you prefer?	One tablet once a day Subcutaneous injection, ie, administered below the skin, possibly to self-administer or by someone else at home or in a hospital Intravenous medication, given by a physician or in a hospital
Q27. How important is self-administration, without help of someone else?	Very important More or less important Neither important nor unimportant (indifferent) More or less unimportant Totally unimportant
Q28. For what reason would you recommend the Lower-Saxony Rheuma-Liga? (Please check all answers that apply)	To participate in the physical training offered by the Rheuma-Liga To participate in other offerings of the Rheuma-Liga To receive information about dealing with the disease To talk to and communicate with persons who are affected by the same disease To meet new people Other reason such as:
Q28b. If you have specified more than one reason, which of them was the single most important for you?	To participate in the physical training offered the Rheuma-Liga To participate in other offerings of the Rheuma-Liga To receive information about dealing with diseases To talk to and communicate with persons who are affected by the same disease To meet new people Other reason such as:
Q29. Do you know anything else offered by the Rheuma-Liga beside the physical training? (Please check all answers that apply)	No Yes, information events Written information material Seminars on various topics Discussion groups Dance groups Occupational therapy groups Strength training Pain management courses Patient education Special insurance rates Special travel rates Counseling in social law “Mobil” member magazine Other such as:
Q30. How did you find out about the Rheuma-Liga? (Please check all answers that apply)	General practitioner Rheumatologist Other specialist Media outlets Internet Other patients/affected persons
Q31. How did you find out what the Rheuma-Liga has to offer? (Please check all answers that apply)	General practitioner Rheumatologist Other specialist Media outlets Internet Other patients/affected persons
Q32. Have you taken advantage of what the Rheuma-Liga has to offer? (Please check all answers that apply)	No Yes, information events Written information material Seminars on various topics Discussion groups Dance groups Occupational therapy groups Strength training Pain management courses Patient education Special insurance rates Special travel rates Counseling in social law “Mobil” member magazine Other
Q33. Could you imagine yourself using one or more of the following items the Rheuma-Liga has to offer in the future?
Nursing care	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Household help organization	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Rehabilitation offer (eg, in a rehabilitation center)	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Physician and medical care (eg, physical therapy, physiotherapy)	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Support in getting a second opinion from a physician in a medical question	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Support in dealing with social services offices and administrations	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Support in dealing with the health insurance company or pension insurance	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Q34. Overall, how satisfied are you with the current offer of the Rheuma-Liga?	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
Q35. Could you imagine yourself taking advantage of one or several of the following possible courses offered by the Rheuma-Liga?
Therapeutic back training	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Endurance training (eg, walking)	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Relaxation techniques/dealing with stress	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Nutrition and overweight	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Nutrition and osteoporosis	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Nutrition and rheumatic disease	Definitely, yes Rather, yes Rather, no Definitely, no
Q36. Do you participate in the functional training offered by the Rheuma-Liga?	Yes No
Q37. How did you find out about the functional training courses offered by the Rheuma-Liga?	Friends/relatives/neighbors Other members of the Rheuma-Liga Physiotherapist Physician Health insurer Pension insurance Rehabilitation center Others such as:
Q38. In addition to the functional training, did your physician prescribe you any individual physiotherapy within the past 3 months?	Yes, more than 10 sessions Yes, 6 to 10 sessions Yes, 3 to 5 sessions Yes, 1 to 2 sessions No
Q39. How satisfied are you with the following aspects of the functional training?
Course instructor	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
Group size	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
Rooms	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
Hours during which the course takes place	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
Frequency of the training	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
Degree of difficulty of the training	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
The amount to pay for participating in the physical training	Very satisfied Rather satisfied Rather dissatisfied Very dissatisfied
Q40. According to your opinion, what is the effect of the functional training on the following aspects of your condition?
Physical fitness	Very favorable Somewhat favorable Barely favorable Not favorable
Physical discomfort	Very favorable Somewhat favorable Barely favorable Not favorable
Mood	Very favorable Somewhat favorable Barely favorable Not favorable