Life As A Nephrologist Series

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 that has both patient-entered data and electronic medical records for patients with all stages of kidney disease. By joining the network, patients will not only help build this important data set, but they will have access to on-going clinical trials; health tips; individualized patient education for their specific stage of the disease; and a community of other patients. The user friendly and secure Network collects both rigorous clinical and laboratory data from electronic health records (EHR), in addition to patient-e

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 Responsibility for Advance Care Planning. She offers advice on decisions about modality for advance kidney disease patients and dialysis. She notes how is it not only important to work well with the interdisciplinary team, but it’s crucial to coordinate with the patient’s other providers, such as their cardiologist, oncologists, etc. The conversation about the patient’s care needs to continue overtime and the care team must be on the same page in order to make it less difficult for the patient. In relation to advanced care pl

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 Associate Professor of Medicine at UAB and incoming Women in Nephrology President Dr. Susan Quaggin, Canadian nephrologist and incoming American Society of Nephrology President Dr. Reshma Kewalramani, CEO and President of Vertex Pharmaceuticals These women discuss their journeys, the importance of mentorship, taking risks, kindness, and keeping prospective. Also, they talk about finding your purpose, perseverance, and how to bounce back from failure and rejection. We hope you enjoy this episode with significant insi

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 training to practice and early-stage career development. The authors describe the exchange visitor and temporary worker visas granted to foreign trainees in the U.S, focusing on the transition from training to nephrology practice and/or research. They provide recommendations and encourage trainees to seek continuous support from their programs/sponsors and assistance from immigration representatives at their training institutions. This episode provides a positive message that there are many pathways to arrive at the desir

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 discusses his journey to becoming an expert in telemedicine and the challenges that come with the territory. He explains how you can accomplish a lot over the phone in nephrology, but there can be issues with technology, internet connection (especially for patients in rural areas), and tech literacy. Lastly, he explains how socioeconomics play a huge role in Telehealth, public health and public education issues, techniques to improve your phone calls with patients, and the future of Telehealth.       

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 application for the 2020-2021 is due May 30, 2020! Applicants need to be current first year neph fellows or second year fellows staying on for a third year, with an interest in academic writing and publishing.  Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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 Twitter and visit kidneymedicinejournal.org to check out the current issue and submit manuscripts!    Please help us welcome our new host of "Life a Nephrologist", Corey Cavanaugh, DO! Corey Cavanaugh, DO, is a nephrologist specializing in glomerular diseases or diseases that impact the kidneys. These include lupus, vasculitis, membranous nephropathy and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), among others. Cavanaugh attended medical school at the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine at Ohio University, where he met h

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 Wilmington, DE. They have an engaging discussion about pediatric nephrology as a newer field of medicine and describe the people who are drawn to it as naturally empathetic problem solvers. Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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 a rural nephrologist and how she “wears a lot of hats” by necessity. Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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 care. Her book, Hundreds of Interlaced Fingers, a Kidney Doctor's Search for the Perfect Match, was published by Harpers Collins in 2017. It’s a memoir, a love story, and a gripping description of the experience of dialysis and kidney transplant patients all in one. She also has the enviable Twitter handle: @TheNephrologist. Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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 2019-2020 internship is now open! Applicants need to be current first year neph fellows or second year fellows staying on for a third year, with an interest in academic writing and publishing.   Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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 thoughts on working as both a physician and a writer. Doctor (Object Lessons) by Andrew Bomback https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/doctor-9781501338175/ https://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Object-Lessons-Andrew-Bomback/dp/150133817X  Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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 Incremental Care (The New Yorker) Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0    

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 great career advice for those interested in interventional nephrology (and anyone, really!). Music by Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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

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. 

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

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 Scott Holmes “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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/glomerular-disease-case-conferences/ NephJC (Journal Club) http://www.nephjc.com/ Nephrology Social Media Collective http://www.nephjc.com/internship/ Nephrology Business Leadership University http://NBLUniv.com/ Renal Fellows Network http://renalfellow.blogspot.com/ 

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 “Follow Your Dreams” licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0