This is the final episode of a series celebrating the 40th anniversary of the American Journal of Kidney Disease, an official journal of the National Kidney Foundation. AJKD is recognized worldwide as a leader in clinical nephrology content, publishing original investigations describing the latest findings related to kidney diseases, hypertension, dialysis therapies, and kidney transplantation. Join us as we discuss how the AJKD has helped bring the patient experience and patient voice to resear...
Mar 16, 2023•22 min•Ep. 36
Too many kidney patients face significant barriers to accessing lifesaving care. Research shows longer, more frequent dialysis done in the home yields better kidney health outcomes and improved quality of life for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Yet, patients do not have equal access to this treatment option. Join us as we unpack disparities in today’s kidney disease treatment paradigm and discuss the steps, we, as nephrologists, need to take to all...
Jun 23, 2022•29 min•Ep. 35
In this episode, we are joined by a hardworking group of individuals who are passionate about advocating for patients with kidney disease. Our guests focus on the ways in which AJKD has communicated health policy updates in the last four decades and discuss key developments in kidney disease and health policy. They explain some of the current policy challenges facing the kidney disease community today. Furthermore, they discuss the future of slowing progression of CKD as well as shifting kidney ...
Mar 28, 2022•46 min•Ep. 34
Welcome to another episode celebrating the 40th year of the American Journal of Kidney Diseases. This episode will focus on AJKD’s education features. We are joined by Dr. Jeff Berns, the Deputy Editor of AJKD, Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and a Past President of the National Kidney Foundation, Dr. Agnes Fogo, Editor of the Atlas of Renal Pathology and Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University, Dr Ashgar Rastegar, Core Curriculum Editor, and Professor of Medicine ...
Feb 24, 2022•23 min•Ep. 33
This podcast will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the very first clinical practice guideline for CKD which included recommendations for CKD classification and staging. We are joined by Dr. Kerry Willis, Chief Scientific Officer of the NKF, Dr. Andy Levey Professor of Medicine at Tufts Medical Center and Joe Coresh, Professor of Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and Mike Rocco, Chair of KDOQI and Professor of Medicine at Wake Forest Medical Center. The original workgroup for...
Jan 24, 2022•38 min•Ep. 32
On this episode, our guests discuss how AJKD has pursued and met objectives over the past 40 years. Specifically, we will discuss how the AJKD has not only influenced the care of patients with kidney disease but helped NKF support its mission. We will discuss how AJKD helped to shape kidney disease research and clinical care and help grow patient centered care. We are joined by four outstanding colleagues and speakers who will share their thoughts and experiences with AJKD and its impact on clin...
Dec 13, 2021•31 min•Ep. 31
Over the past year and a half, the NKF and ASN have been leading the effort to develop race-free eGFR test results while maintaining the accuracy of the test. The NKF-ASN Task Force on Reassessing the Inclusion of Race in Diagnosing Kidney Diseases has recently released its final report that recommends a new, race-free approach to estimate eGFR. In this collaborative episode with the ASN, the Task Force discusses how they approached the work and what efforts are being made to ensure the new equa...
Nov 10, 2021•37 min•Ep. 30
Dr. Dorry Segev has recently concluded multiple studies that looked at the immune response to COVID-19 vaccination in kidney transplant recipients. In this episode, Sam Kant (our new Life as a Nephrologist co-host) and Dorry Segev discuss these pivotal studies including the process, results, and directions going forward. Lastly, they discuss breakthrough infections. List of study’s discussed: Immunogenicity of a Single Dose of SARS-CoV-2 Messenger RNA Vaccine in Solid Organ Transplant Recipients...
Aug 11, 2021•25 min•Ep. 29
In this episode, we are discussing critical care nephrology, a dynamic and developing field which has seen an increase in popularity in the last decade. Our guests include a mix of junior and senior faculty, which is a testament to how this field is expanding. Amanda Dijanic Zeidman and Michael Heung have recently authored the ACKD article “The Workforce in Critical Care Nephrology: Challenges and Opportunities” which is the topic of this episode’s discussion. They are also joined by Jay Koyner ...
Aug 03, 2021•47 min•Ep. 28
For many in the LGBTQ+ community, fear of discrimination and harassment can get in the way of seeking medical care when they are sick and can put them at increased risk of serious health problems, including kidney disease. In this episode, we discussed how to create an inclusive and affirming environment in a healthcare setting for LGBTQ+ patients such as how a provider earns trust, what qualities a gender affirming provider has, understanding patient’s identities, how you can make your dialysis...
Jun 28, 2021•45 min•Ep. 27
After almost two years of collaboration with volunteer advisory committees—comprised of nephrologists, patient advocates, and researchers in academia and the private sector—the NKF Patient Network is live! On this episode of Life as a Nephrologist, we are joined by Kerry Willis, Lesley Inker, Alexander Chang, Cari Maxwell and Curtis Warfield. Our guests begin the episode by explaining how the patient network journey started and the purpose of creating it. It is the only kidney disease registry t...
Apr 05, 2021•37 min•Ep. 26
On this episode, Corey is joined by our guest, Holly M. Koncicki, Associate Professor of Nephrology and Palliative Care at Mount Sinai. Dr. Koncicki is in the Division of Nephrology and Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. First, Dr. Koncicki discusses what inspired her to become a nephrologist and how she became interested in palliative care. Corey and Dr. Koncicki review data from To Dialysis and Beyond: The Nephrologist’s Respons...
Dec 15, 2020•27 min•Ep. 25
The faces of leadership in nephrology are changing, what was once a playing field for exclusively men, is slowly transforming to include a diverse group of men and women. In this episode, we are joined by women who have traversed the leadership ladder. This group includes a current President, two incoming presidents of nephrology societies and an industry executive: Dr. Holly Kramer, National Kidney Foundation President, clinical nephrologist at Loyola University Medical Center Dr Lisa Curtis As...
Oct 14, 2020•56 min•Ep. 24
In this episode, we discuss the recently published ACKD article, “International Medical Graduates in Nephrology: A Guide for Trainees and Programs” Our guests are the authors, Javier Neyra, Maria Clarissa Tio, Silvia Ferrè and the co-editors Matthew Sparks and Samira Farouk. Although international medical graduates are offered opportunities for training and professional growth that are beyond those available in their countries of origin, they typically encounter barriers to transition from train...
Aug 27, 2020•40 min•Ep. 23
This episode we bring on Eric L. Wallace, M.D., FASN, Director of Home Dialysis at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Medical Director of Telehealth. Telehealth allows patients to teleconference and/or have telephone conversations with their existing doctor(s). In today’s environment, with many provider offices still closed, this may be a good solution and/or alternative for patients to continue their existing care under the direction of their provider via teleconference. Dr. Wallace di...
Jul 29, 2020•44 min•Ep. 22
This episode features the the second cohort of interns from the American Journal of Kidney Diseases (AJKD) Editorial Internship Program. This one-year program is an opportunity for nephrology fellows to participate in journal editorial processes. Tune in to learn more about their experience! The 2020 interns are: Harish Seethapathy - Massachusetts General Hospital Bethany Roehm - Tufts Medical Center Amy Yau - Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Ryann Sohaney - University of Michigan The app...
May 06, 2020•24 min•Ep. 21
In this episode, Editor-in-Chief Daniel E. Weiner, MD, MS, discusses Kidney Medicine, a peer-reviewed, open access journal focused on clinical research in nephrology and hypertension launched in 2019. Listeners will more about how Kidney Medicine provides content that encompasses all clinical nephrology while additionally providing a platform for highlighting the patient-reported outcomes research and qualitative research that are essential for improving patient care. Follow @KidneyMed on Twitte...
Feb 26, 2020•16 min•Ep. 20
I’m delighted to share a conversation we recorded between two wonderful people, Dr Patty Seo Mayer and Dr JJ Zaritsky. Dr Seo Mayer is Medical Director of Pediatric Nephrology at Inova Children’s Hospital and Pediatric Specialists of Virginia, and an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine. Dr. Zaritsky is Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Thomas Jefferson University and Chief of Pediatric Nephrology at Nemours duPont Hospital for Children in W...
Jul 17, 2019•37 min•Ep. 19
Dr. Lisa Weber is a fascinating and extremely busy person, a nephrologist and dialysis medical director in Wichita, Kansas. Dr. Weber has a multifaceted career involving caring for CKD and transplant patients in the city of Wichita, and travelling to oversee dialysis clinics in the surrounding areas. She attended medical school at the University of Kansas and completed Nephrology Fellowship at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. We talk about some of the joys and challenges of practicing as...
Jun 03, 2019•20 min•Ep. 18
This episode is a conversation with Dr. Vanessa Grubbs, a nephrologist and Associate Professor of Medicine at UCSF. Dr. Grubbs went to medical school at Duke University, completed internal medicine residency at Highland Hospital in Oakland, California, and nephrology fellowship at UCSF. She describes her true passions as renal palliative care and narrative non-fiction. We talk about these topics as well as racial disparities in the care of kidney patients, and her path to nephrology from primary...
Apr 29, 2019•24 min•Ep. 17
This is a conversation with the first cohort of interns from the American Journal of Kidney Diseases (AJKD) new Editorial Internship Program. This one-year program is an opportunity for nephrology fellows to participate in journal editorial processes. The first year’s interns are: Samantha Gelfand MD, University of Pennsylvania Pascale Khairallah MD, Columbia University, Devika Nair MD, Vanderbilt University, Adrian Whelan MD, University of California at San Francisco The application for the 201...
Feb 14, 2019•12 min•Ep. 16
Dr. Andrew Bomback is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Columbia University and a specialist in glomerular diseases. He is also a writer, having published in the Los Angeles Review of Books, The Atlantic, and The Kenyon Review, among others. His recently published book is entitled Doctor. It’s part of a series called Object Lessons - short books that are part memoir, part nonfiction, each looking at the ‘hidden lives’ of an everyday object or concept. We talk about that book as well as his t...
Jan 10, 2019•43 min•Ep. 15
In this episode I spoke with two internal medicine residents, Dr. Lena Vaynberg (Duke) and Dr. Sam Kant (University of Maryland) about their experiences with nephrology to date. They discuss what draws them to the field, including various works of literature and gaps in medical education, and explain the related work they’ve each been involved with so far. See a write up of Lena's " Project Nephron " here, the book and article Sam references here: Guns, Germs and Steel (Amazon) The Heroism of In...
Dec 12, 2018•25 min•Ep. 14
Dr. Mukesh Sharma is an interventional nephrologist in private practice who also works as an adjunct professor at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Interventional nephrology is a sub-specialization that enables the physician to perform a number of procedures related to creating and maintaining dialysis accesses (AV fistulas and grafts, and catheters). Dr. Sharma went to medical school in India before completing residency and fellowship at Louisiana State University. He shares some gre...
Nov 20, 2018•31 min•Ep. 13
UCSF medical student Ani Chiligirian talks about her experiences to date and how they have sparked her interest in nephrology. She also explains the research she's working on as a 2018 NKF award recipient. Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0
Oct 30, 2018•15 min•Ep. 12
In this episode we listen to a conversation between Dr. Vera Delaney, a transplant nephrologist, and Dr. Kelly Beers, a second-year nephrology fellow, both at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City. Dr. Delaney lived and completed medical training (and a PhD) in Ireland and London before moving to the United States in the 1970s to pursue a nephrology fellowship. She talks about transplant nephrology as a subspecialty and the changes she has seen in the field over the past few decades.
Sep 18, 2018•19 min•Ep. 11
This episode is a conversation between two first-year nephrology fellows, Dr. Anthony Provenzano at Duke University, and Dr. Rachel Hilburg at the University of Pennsylvania. We recorded it the weekend before they began their programs, and it is full of good advice (and enthusiasm)! Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0
Aug 21, 2018•36 min•Ep. 10
Here we talk with Dr. Belinda Lee about some of the various career choices available in nephrology. Dr. Lee attended Mount Sinai School of Medicine in NY and completed her residency at Columbia University NY Presbyterian Hospital. She then completed a combined nephrology and transplant fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital. She worked first as an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Tulane University and is now in private practice in Baltimore. Music by Scot...
Aug 09, 2018•20 min•Ep. 8
This epsiode is a conversation between between Dr. Matthew Sparks, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Associate Program Director for Nephrology Fellowship at Duke University, and Dr. Diana Mina, a graduating nephrology fellow at University of California San Francisco. They talk about the role of social media in medical education, mentorship, and how to get involved with the nephrology community...right now. Email us at NKFpodcast@kidney.org . Resources discussed: GlomCon https://glomcon.org/glo...
Jul 24, 2018•32 min•Ep. 7
This is an interview with Dr. Leslie Gewin, a practicing nephrologist and basic science researcher at Vanderbilt University. She is an attending physician on the general internal medicine and nephrology consult services at the Nashville VA Medical Center. Dr. Gewin also runs a basic science laboratory which focuses on understanding how growth factors alter the epithelial response to renal injury. We talk about her career so far and how she manages its various components. Music by Scott Holmes “F...
Jul 05, 2018•20 min•Ep. 6
