Dialysis from the sharp end of the needle

Northwest Kidney Centers is Unique and Valuable

By Bill Peckham

   photo by Diane Bloch

I watched the Blue Angels this weekend. Every year, as part of Seafair the Navy air team is here in Seattle on the first weekend of August and between the hydroplane heats they preform their signature maneuvers over Lake Washington. 

Taking advantage of the free entertainment above their lake front home, a University of Washington nephrologist and her husband hosted a fund raiser for  Northwest Kidney Centers. Sitting at the water's edge watching the air show, I was struck that the event neatly illustrated much of what is unique and valuable about the organization.

  photo by Diane Bloch

Northwest Kidney Centers is the result of Dr. Belding Scribner's vision of how the provision of dialysis should be organized. Given all the possible ways one could provide dialysis Scribner imagined something that did not exist in 1961. 

Scribner's vision was for there to be a not-for-profit, community based organization to steward the community's kidney health. Scribner imagined an organization that could partner with the community, and act on the community's behalf.

Scribner's vision, which started with just three patients in 1962, has grown into today's Northwest Kidney Centers, which serves thousands of Washington State residents every year through their incenter, hospital and pharmacy programs. If Scribner could have been at the event on Saturday he would be proud of the organization his vision launched in 1962, he would have seen that the still not-for-profit Northwest Kidney Centers is busy growing its partnership with the community.

It's not Northwest Dialysis Centers, it is Northwest Kidney Centers with the mission to promote the optimal health, quality of life and independence of people with kidney disease, through patient care, education and research. The event Saturday wasn't in support of dialysis, it was in support of Northwest Kidney Centers transplant services and research efforts. As stewards of the community's kidney health Northwest Kidney Centers promotes transplant as a first line treatment for severe chronic kidney disease. Ideally people with diminishing kidney function can go straight to transplant without ever starting dialysis.

Northwest Kidney Centers doesn't profit when someone has a preemptive transplant, but as Scribner imagined the organization is owned by the community and is therefor dedicated to the community's kidney health, not just the community's dialysis needs. Dedication to what is best for the community is an unique and valuable characteristic of Northwest Kidney Centers, and it compels a commitment to kidney research.

Research provides hope. As good as Northwest Kidney Centers is they understand that it isn't enough to keep doing what they've always done, we all have to do better. Research is how we will get better. As stewards of the community's kidney health Northwest Kidney Centers partnered with UW Medicine to create a Kidney Research Institute with a three pronged research mission

Scientific investigation. The KRI conducts research with high potential to tangibly improve the lives of people with kidney disease; for example, by understanding uremia and other complications from loss of kidney function.

Training. The KRI trains pre- and postdoctoral fellows in a multidisciplinary, collaborative approach to clinically relevant questions.

Collaboration. The KRI collaborates and interacts within Northwest Kidney Centers and the UW Medicine Division of Nephrology, as well as with other Department of Medicine divisions, School of Medicine departments, and with the University of Washington Schools of Public Health and Community Medicine, Education, Business, Engineering, Information Technology and Public Affairs. Clinical research space is at Harborview Medical Center and at Northwest Kidney Centers.

On Saturday we heard that the KRI has already generated over 20 million dollars in research grants in just its first two years.

20 million dollars of research grants is a great start but even more exciting is that as donor support grows, the KRI can scale up to bring more minds, grants and collaborations into the fight against kidney disease. As support grows the KRI's research will shape the future of kidney treatment around the world. It's an exciting development.

Northwest Kidney Centers created the Kidney Research Institute because we need the Kidney Research Institute. But it was due to Scribner's vision that we had in place an organization that was able to identify and act on this pressing need. Because of Scribner's vision we have an organization with the ability to focus community support on kidney research. Because of Scribner's vision we have an organization that is promoting preemptive kidney transplants. It was a low key fund raiser on a cloudy Saturday, but it really could only have happened in Seattle.

Kidney Research Institute finishes first year with funding success

By Bill Peckham

The Northwest Kidney Centers lives its mission. They  promote the optimal health, quality of life and independence of people with kidney disease, through patient care, education and research. I'm very proud of the organization, I've been a volunteer for many years, in many roles and I am excited about my newest position on the Kidney Research Institute's Council. The KRI is, in my view, the answer to the question: "How is the Northwest Kidney Centers implementing its strategy of conducting research to promote the optimal health, quality of life and independence of people with kidney disease?"

Northwest Kidney Centers CEO Joyce Jackson, was recently featured in Washington Healthcare News (PDF link) and she makes the point that research is the only way we're going to improve the experience of renal replacement:

We’re committed to working to change this situation. NKC, in collaboration with UW Medicine, founded the Kidney Research Institute last year. So far it has secured $11 million in public grant funding to conduct clinical research to improve patients’ lives and slow the progression of kidney disease. We’re excited to think that the next generation of people with kidney problems will have a therapy that works better than today’s dialysis or transplantation.

Too little research has been done that is important to people with CKD, the KRI helps change this.

I was involved in founding the KRI (after an intense and edifying process) and let me tell you that "$11 million in public grant funding to conduct clinical research to improve patients’ lives and slow the progression of kidney disease" far exceeded my expectation for the KRI's first year. The KRI is doing what we all hoped it would do. The KRI is putting to work public funding, National Institute of Health money for instance, on improving the lives of people with CKD. And the KRI is doing this very efficiently because it is embedded at the University of Washington, one of the nation's leading research universities. This means the KRI can use the UW's world class research infrastructure e.g. review boards, accounting expertise, rather than reinventing the wheel (and spending a lot of money) as an independent Institute.

The Director of the KRI, Jonathan Himmelfarb, holds the The Joseph W. Eschbach Endowed Chair in Kidney Research (DSEN Eschbach mentions, Wikipedia). It was Eschbach who knew the KRI could do the job, he was a key founder of the Institute, and he would be so excited by the KRI's success. However, with success comes new challenges.

That public funding doesn't cover all the expenses of running a Kidney Research Institute. One of the things I've learned during this process, something that had never occurred to me, is the importance of supporting young investigators. Himmelfarb is good but he can't do this by himself. He needs a strong group of young investigators chipping away too. I've learned that it is hard to break into the business. It is hard to become and continue to work as an investigator.

Young investigators need bridge funding to keep them at work between grants, which I've also learned is a very competitive process. Through donations the KRI can support the next generation, so that the KRI can focus more great minds on the problem. I want as many of these smart people thinking about CKD as possible so my intention is to raise money for the KRI. I want as many people as possible to be working on improving the lives of people with CKD and one day I hope CKD will be far less common.

I want people to know about the need for research. The need for research that matters to those with CKD and I want people to know the solution I've been honored to be a part of. I want people to know about the Kidney Research Institute. DSEN is going all in.

um I'm not entirely sure what "going all in" means in this context but I know we have to grow this KRI. Which means raise money. Any suggestions? Having people give money is the obvious solution, so donate, just indicate it's for research and you'll help grow the KRI. I'm not asking you to do anything I haven't done. It's easy, just do what I did and give until it feels good!