News

The Canadian Society of Nephrology (CSN) became an ISN Collective-Member Society more than 15 years ago. Since then, the ISN and the CSN have enjoyed a productive collaboration.

The CSN supported the ISN World Congress of Nephrology (WCN) in 2011 in Vancouver, which gathered over 5,000 participants from 110 countries. CSN members hosted WCN participants in their homes as part of an outreach program and contributed to free registration for several participants from low-income countries.

A decade later, the CSN is co-hosting the virtual WCN’21 alongside the ISN and the Société Québécoise de Néphrologie (SQN): “CSN is thrilled to be hosting virtual WCN’21 with the ISN and SQN.  It’s been a wonderful collaboration with all three societies.  We had a common vision which has evolved into a great educational program”, comments Filomena Picciano, CSN Director of Operations.

Despite the pandemic, the CSN has continued to thrive. We spoke to Filomena Picciano about recent developments within the society: All programs were adapted online, including the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and the annual CSN Debate. The current academic content was developed in response to a needs assessment analysis of member requirements.

All CSN members received access to one or two webinars per month featuring experts in the field as well as a series of joint webinars in collaboration with societies such as Hypertension Canada, CAPN, and KFOC. The London Dialysis Course, an accredited self-assessment program, was made available free of charge to CSN members.

Specific sessions on COVID-19 were presented, including a collaborative session with the Australian and New Zealand Society of Nephrology (ANZSN) on teaching points from COVID’s second wave and recently a patient-centered session on the COVID-19 vaccine.

The CSN website was remodeled with updated resources and increased interactivity, and the latest protocols and resources from centers across the country were added to the existing repository.

Forthcoming initiatives include further collaborations to produce educational webinars and AGM conference sessions, the development of additional accredited group learning and self-assessment sessions, virtual AGM e-poster sessions featuring members’ research, and online networking opportunities for CSN members.

The ISN is looking forward to an outstanding virtual WCN’21 with CSN’s valued expertise and support.