Pre-Congress Program

The course covers the principles and practicalities of designing and conducting effective advocacy campaigns. Led and taught by internationally renowned kidney health advocates, it equips participants with the knowledge, skills, and techniques to advocate at all levels.

The course, divided into three sessions, will explore real-life examples of successful advocacy campaigns in different countries, provide training on how to gather and generate evidence to support policy development, provide guidance on designing and implementing an advocacy plan, and present advice on engaging with politicians, policy-makers, and journalists. Participants will also have the chance to gain hands-on experience by analyzing two case studies and designing their own advocacy strategy under the guidance of experts.

This is an introductory course designed for anyone interested in advocating for kidney health. No previous advocacy experience is required to take the course.

This course in observational study design will provide an overview of the most salient approaches used in clinical nephrology research today. It will enhance the course participants’ skills in the critical appraisal of published medical literature.  Both traditional and more novel study designs, along with approaches to their statistical analysis, will be highlighted.  In addition, presentations will focus on controlling confounding variables, developing and evaluating diagnostic tests, epidemiological investigation using “big” data, and the principles underlying pharmacoepidemiological studies.  Course participants will be exposed to illustrative examples from published nephrology literature.

This course is designed for physicians and associate health providers, offering a unique opportunity to learn the fundamentals and latest advances in dialysis access care. The course covers dialysis access care during the COVID-19 pandemic, tips for improving PD catheter outcomes, point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS), ultrasound-guided procedures, and vascular access care.

POCUS has emerged as an essential tool for bedside diagnostic evaluation in clinical practice. The session will discuss the use of POCUS for evaluating kidney, bladder, vascular access, and volume status in CKD patients. The ultrasound-guided procedures session will discuss HD and PD catheter placement, kidney biopsy, AV access cannulation, and PTA. The vascular access session will discuss the management of stuck catheters, dysfunctional catheters, high flow fistula, and early fistula failure. World experts will be present for live Q&A sessions following each topic.

The course comprises three sessions on current issues in nephrology: Advances in Glomerulonephritis therapy, lessons learned from COVID-19, and an overview of chronic kidney disease/ kidney failure. Presented by experts, the first session covers the latest developments in managing lupus nephritis, ANCA vasculitis, and childhood nephrotic syndrome. The second session will highlight the impact of the COVID-19 infection on critical care nephrology, dialysis patients, and transplant recipients. The last session will elaborate on the effects of malnutrition in kidney patients, the importance of CKD of unknown etiology, and the challenges of managing CKD in developing counties.

This Symposium focuses on integrated, interprofessional care models – the ideal paradigm for all kidney health professionals and patient partners. The program covers important topics ranging from design implementation and evaluation to quality improvement, highlighting interprofessional skills and diversity of practice across the Globe. Learn how diverse professional roles and patient collaboration contribute to optimal patient-centered care outcomes.

Renal biopsy examination plays an important role in the diagnosis and management of renal diseases, providing prognostic information and guidance in therapeutic decision-making. The course offers an in-depth update of the various kidney lesions commonly encountered, along with the potential utility of ancillary techniques. Recent insights into the pathophysiologic aspects of diseases and recommendations for further molecular and genetic studies will also be addressed.

A range of the glomerular and tubulointerstitial kidney lesions will be discussed, along with problematic areas in transplant pathology. Additionally, a symposium dedicated to developments in diagnostic techniques in renal pathology, as well as a case seminar showing distinctive renal biopsy findings that are instructive towards a definitive diagnosis, will be presented. The speakers are renowned renal pathologists and nephrologists from around the world.

Pre-recorded presentations will be available on-demand from February 22, 2021, followed by live CPC and Q&A sessions on February 24. Delegates are strongly recommended to view the pre-recorded didactic sessions before participating in the live sessions on Thursday, February 24. During the pre-recorded didactic sessions, delegates can submit questions via a chatbox. Speakers will receive these questions before the live sessions on Thursday, February 24.