Looking to the Future: New YNC Leadership Shares Current Projects
YNC Chair Marina Wainstein and Deputy Chair Sabine Karam
The Young Nephrologists Committee (YNC) was launched in 2007 to understand and evaluate the needs of young nephrologists worldwide to develop opportunities for them within the ISN.
From the 11 founding members to the 24 current ones—including two allied health professionals and one Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) guest member—the committee has grown and thrived under dedicated leadership to become an important advocacy and support group for young nephrologists (YNs) everywhere.
We’re delighted to welcome recent members from DR Congo, South Africa, Mexico, UAE, USA, Canada, China, Malaysia, and Norway. In addition, we bid farewell, with enormous gratitude, to several members whose term on the committee has come to an end. These include two past YNC chairs, Gavin Dreyer and Rolando Claure del Granado, whom we congratulate on becoming an ISN Executive Committee member: We look forward to connecting with you again through other ISN committees and activities.
Despite the hardships of the past 18 months because of the pandemic, YNs have remained resilient and committed to their education and clinical practice while maintaining a spirit of collaboration and optimism.
In the past year, the YNC hosted its first webinar highlighting opportunities for YNs in various ISN committees, showcased a YNC session at the WCN with inspiring speakers and YNC members, contributed enthusiastically to the “Breakthrough Discoveries” series, and provided first-hand accounts of working on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the year ahead, we will explore the creation of a YN forum on the ISN website, hosted and moderated by the YNC, to discuss general topics and clinical dilemmas of current concern. In response to the increasing interest from YNs to join and engage with the committee, we plan to introduce a broader network to harness this enthusiasm.
The future looks bright, with many endeavors already established, such as the ELP program, grants for scientific writing, and continuous renal replacement therapy courses, or underway, such as contributing to developing the ISN mentorship program and stronger ties with Kidney International. We look forward to more capacity building and a greater contribution from the YNs toward ISN’s mission and vision to advance kidney health worldwide—together.
