| | I hope the chilly January did not cause too much upset and mayhem. I know you will all be looking forward to thoughts of Spring and with that can I remind you that the date for early registration for the joint meeting with the BTS in Liverpool is the 4th March. Register now as there are considerable savings to be made.
Over 540 abstracts were submitted, a record even on the hefty total for Glasgow of 453. These have now been organised into relevant categories for presentation and presenting authors informed. Those eligible for bursaries will be informed in the near future. Standards were high. 127 abstracts will be presented as oral communications and along with the excellent invited speakers this meeting aims to be one of our best annual meetings yet.
Trainees please respond to Phil Mason's request for information on job plans and future aspirations. The JSC Workforce group need accurate information to model workforce planning.
Also remember the first diet of the nephrology specialty certificate exam is the 18th March. Practice exam questions can be found by clicking here.
The RA clinical practice guideline modules on Blood Borne Virus Infection in the Renal Unit and Peritoneal Access are now available on the RA website and can be accessed from the link below. Feedback on these documents is required and can be fed back to Colin Geddes for blood borne viruses and Martin Wilkie for peritoneal access.
Best wishes
Lorraine Harper
Honorary Secretary
| | Elections 2009
President - Elect
All nominations are now in and we are delighted to announce the following candidates for the position of Presidential Elect:
Charlie TOMSON Caroline SAVAGE Ballot papers and candidates' personal statements will be sent out to all members shortly. All information will be sent electronically. Please ensure you have returned your votes by 17:00 on Tuesday 31 March 2009.
| | Obituary for Mike Cassidy
Further to my recent e-mail notification, the Renal Association lost a respected and popular member when Mike Cassidy died recently. His funeral was well-attended despite the difficult weather conditions. I invited Simon Roe to write an obituary, which follows. Our thoughts remain with Mike's family and friends: he will be sadly missed.
Peter Mathieson
President
Mike Cassidy qualified from St Bartholomew's Hospital, London in 1974 and developed an interest in renal medicine during his first job as a houseman in the Bart's Renal Unit. After SHO jobs in London and Torquay, Mike moved to South Africa in 1997. He received his training in nephrology in Cape Town at Groote Schuur Hospital and in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
His work as a Consultant Nephrologist at the University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Hospital and at the Hammersmith Hospital prior to moving to Nottingham in 1996. Following his consultant appointment in Nottingham he oversaw the establishment of the satellite dialysis unit in Mansfield. He served as Clinical Director for Renal Services and developed an active research programme in renal bone disease.
Mike was a caring and conscientious doctor much respected by his patients, staff and colleagues. He contributed immensely to development of services for kidney patients in Nottinghamshire and was a valuable colleague and friend to many. He had an almost infectious love for life, which continued even though he was very sick. He died almost three years to the day that he was diagnosed with metastatic bowel cancer.
He leaves a wife and son.
| Obituary for Willem Johan Kolff
Born 14th February 1911 - Died 11th February 2009
Willem Kolff, who died on February 11th aged 97, was one of the great geniuses of 20th century medicine and made a gigantic contribution to nephrology in his lifetime. He was responsible for the invention of the kidney dialysis machine and instrumental in the development of the artificial heart and the artificial eye.
Those with an interest in the history of dialysis should read Paul Heiney's engaging lay biography of Kolff:
'The Nuts & Bolts of Life' (Sutton Publishing 2002; ISBN - 7509 - 2894 8).
| Advanced Nephrology Course
Message from the President
The Advanced Nephrology course continues to flourish:
I was particularly pleased to see the number of consultants attending the recent course in London. This year's courses mark the transition between the previous organisers Alex Crowe and Mark Harber and their successors Sunil Bhandari and Paul Harden.
I would like to take this opportunity to publicly record my admiration for the superb job that Alex and Mark have
done and to offer sincere thanks on behalf of the Association to both of them.
The course is an educational tour de force: if you have not yet attended, please consider doing so.
Thanks and best wishes,
Peter | RA BTS Conference, Liverpool 2009 We are delighted to announce that registration to the RA BTS Conference 2009 is now open. Early bird deadline is Midday on Wednesday 4th March 2009.
To register for the conference - click here
Abstract submission for the conference is now closed.
For further information please visit the conference website
Or please contact
| Cystic Kidney Disease and the Role of the
Primary Cilium
Renal Association/European Society for Paediatric Nephrology Joint Meeting 3rd Sept 2009
University of Birmingham, UK
Primary cilia are evolutionarily conserved organelles of uncertain function which were first described in 1898. Almost every cell in the body carries a primary cilium. In the past ten years, abnormalities of the primary cilium have been associated with several important diseases affecting the kidney including polycystic kidney disease, nephronopthisis, Meckel's syndrome and Bardet-Biedl Syndrome. These ciliopathies have in turn led to new insights into the functions of the primary cilium and its related organelle, the centrosome or basal body.
This one-day meeting will highlight and summarise for the practising clinician the major scientific advances in this rapidly changing field as well as the exciting therapeutic and diagnostic advances in the management of cystic kidney diseases. Click here to see a full list of speakers.
Abstract submission deadline: 27 March 2009
Early bird registration: 2 May 2009
Click here to visit the ESPN 2009 website
The meeting has been approved for CPD accreditation.
| ESPN 2009
The Young Nephrologists' Symposium
Wednesday 2nd September 2009, Birmingham, UK.
This one day educational satellite meeting will have two main topics: Renal Transplantation and Adolescent Transition.
The symposium is aimed to attract Paediatric and Adult nephrology trainees and recently appointed Consultant Nephrologists from around Europe.
To read more about the course click here
To see a copy of the programme click here
| PD Working Party Document
The Renal Association has established 2 working parties to look at the optimum provision of home therapies for renal replacement therapy.
The draft report of the PD working party is now available for comment on the Renal Association website. Any comments that you would like to make on this document should be emailed to the Chair of the working party, Professor Edwina Brown (with a copy to Kevin Harris) by the 28th February 2009. The working party will then consider your comments before making their final recommendations to the Renal Association at the April conference in Liverpool.
A further working party chaired by Dr Mark MacGregor is preparing a report on the provision of Home Haemodialysis. It is anticipated that this will be available for comment latter in 2009.
Kevin Harris
Clinical Vice President | CPG Guideline modules
Blood Born Virus Infection in the Renal Unit - Click here
Peritoneal Access - Click here
Feedback on BBV infection in the Renal Unit should be sent to colin.geddes@ggc.scot.nhs.uk
Feedback on Peritoneal Access should be sent to martin.wilkie@sth.nhs.uk
| Call for volunteers to pilot 2 new Revalidation Tools
In preparation for the national implementation of revalidation for all career-grade doctors, The Royal College of Physicians of London (RCP) on behalf of The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges is leading a pilot study of tools to be used to support specialist recertification for doctors in the UK.
In collaboration with The American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), the RCP is conducting a trial of the applicability and feasibility of 2 new tools, developed by ABIM, to be used as supporting information for revalidation. Read more
Recruitment closes 13th March 2009 | Attention all Trainees!
JSC Workforce Planning Document.
You will hopefully be aware of the recent JSC Workforce Planning document. The Report predicts an excess of CCT holders over consultant vacancies in the next 5-7 years, but many of the assumptions used in the model are estimates that may be incorrect. We desperately need accurate information from all trainees about job plans and career intentions and their future aspirations and predicted working patterns. The JSC Workforce Group in collaboration with JCRPTB sent a census to all registered trainees to the email address held by them. After 3 weeks only one third of trainees have responded. PLEASE PLEASE respond if you haven't already by clicking here
We need these data to help you all to get jobs and to plan for the appropriate number of future trainees.
| Renal Scientist Newsletter
This month we look at what we should be thinking about now to futureproof our sample collections Click here for more.
| HES Information
THIS MESSAGE IS ONLY DIRECTLY APPLICABLE TO MEMBERS WHO ARE CONSULTANTS PRACTISING IN ENGLAND.
As many of you will be aware there is concern that the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) submitted by our Trusts may not accurately reflect the work and activity that nephrologists undertake. Increasingly this information is being used within the NHS to monitor performance and guide investment decisions. A number of cases where systematic coding issues have caused problems for colleagues around the country when HES data has been used as benchmark of renal unit performance.
Read more
| | NSF Headlines February 2009
Working for better Kidney Care
Renal NSF update - February 2009 - here
Health profile of England highlights CKD as a public health issue -
Read more
Preparing for end stage renal disease project - Read more
Patient Reported Outcome Measures in Kidney Care (PROMS) -
Read more
If you have comments, suggestions or would like to be involved
contact Donal o'Donoghue on donal.o'donoghue@srft.nhs.uk
| UK CKD Workshops
CKD Global Academy
3-5 April 2009
Hilton Hotel
Shefield
UK
For a full programme details on who to contact for more information please click here.
| National Meeting on Living Organ Donation
Nottingham Belfry Hotel - 6th March 2009
Dear Colleague
We hope that you have saved the 6th March 2009 in your diary to join us at the First "National Meeting on Living Organ Donation"
The aim of this meeting is to share, develop and encourage the best practice in living organ donation.
This year, the meeting will concentrate on operative techniques in laparoscopic donor nephrectomy.
This will be a one-day meeting. The venue has been chosen for ease of access and being able to provide a facility for satellite linkage. Read more
Click here for a copy of the agenda
Click here to register | Specialty Certificate Exam, Nephrology Course, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Postgraduate Department. Saturday 7 March 2009
Organised by the Renal SpRs of the North West and East Midlands Regions
We wish to draw to your attention the forthcoming preparatory Course for the MRCP Part 3 Specialty Exam in Renal Medicine.
This is a 1-day Course, prepared by the SpRs in Renal medicine as a self-help exercise for Renal SpRs across the country.
The Manchester Royal Infirmary team has long experience of running MRCP Courses, over the last 10 years, in particular the Part 1 MRCP Course which ran for 7 years.
The Course is supported by the North West Royal College of Physicians Regional Office and the Renal Association, and is non-profit. The Royal College of Physicians Specialty Certiificate Examinations Office has authorised the question setters to teach on this Course.
The course is taught by Consultant Nephrologist speakers from the North West and Midlands Deaneries, from Derby, Leicester, Manchester, Salford and Preston. We include in our speaker panel several Nephrologists who have set questions for the MRCP exams as part of the Nephrology Specialty Question Groups.
We urge all who are doing the exam on March 18 to attend this low-cost Course. In addition this will be good preparation for those who intend to take the exam in later years or who will be teaching for the exam in their own Deanery / Trust.
We would be grateful if you could pass information about this Course to your SpR Colleagues, not all of whom may be Renal Association members,
Support this Course and we will intend to make this an annual event.
With Best Wishes,
Course Organisers:
Darren Green, Jim Ritchie, Matt Hall, Frieder Kleemann, Anu Jayanti, Shabeer Kolakkat, Ching-Mei Chung, Miland Nikan, Azri Nache
John Barratt and Mike Venning, Click here to view a full programme
| A Half-Century of Renal Tubular Disease
27 March 2009
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Oliver Wrong's seminal paper of April 1959 on renal tubular acidosis, the UCL Centre for Nephrology hosts a one-day symposium on current concepts in renal tubular disorders. Professor Wrong will be speaking alongside internationally renowned experts in clinical management and basic science investigation of renal tubular disease. Further infomation
DIALYSIS 2009
10-12 June 2009
The management of end stage renal failure by dialysis forms a central component of all renal units. However, it is often the least intensively taught component of nephrology training. The aim of this intensive course is to provide a thorough introduction to dialysis, from basics to new developments.
The invited expert faculty will provide comprehensive coverage of all aspects of dialysis and ESRF through a mixture of informal lectures and workshops. The course is aimed at Specialist Registrars in nephrology, but will also be of interest to other health care professionals involved in the management of patients with chronic renal failure.
Further information | | Renal Pathology Course for Nephrologists
12-13th March 2009 Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital.
"What you need to know about the renal biopsy and its interpretation"
This successful course is in its 5th year and places are on a first come first serve basis.
Please send completed application forms to Alan Salama to reserve a place. | Renal Physiology for the Clinician - 6-8 May 2009 The Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust, Pond Street, London Fluids, electrolytes and acid-base
All you need to know about fluid and electrolyte balance, but were too puzzled to ask!
This course aims to integrate physiological principles with day-to-day clinical practice. It will feature formal, introductory lectures each day, and clinical case-based and interactive discussions with our faculty designed to illustrate and build upon the day's presentations.
It is intended for Specialist Registrars in Nephrology, and will also be of interest to more senior General (Internal) Medicine SPRs and SPRs in Intensive Care Medicine. Consultant Nephrologists and General Physicians with an interest in fluid and electrolyte disorders are welcome to attend as a "refresher" course. Further information | Member Suggestion Box If you have any ideas or would like to include an article or event in eNews, please contact the Renal Association Secretariat on 0870 458 4155 or renalenews@mci-group.com. | | | World Kidney Day 2009
March 12, 2009 - A New Day! - The 4th World Kidney Day
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