March is National Kidney Month, and this issue of Medicine Matters spotlights and celebrates the achievements of the Division of Nephrology and its remarkable faculty. Under the leadership of chief Mark Okusa, division faculty members have had extraordinary success in obtaining funding for their multipronged research efforts that are forging new directions in the understanding and treatment of kidney disease. Several are working on new therapeutic approaches to acute kidney injury that have the potential to revolutionize AKI management. Nephrology’s funding success is particularly noteworthy given the difficult climate for NIH research funding generally, and the historically lower levels of funding for kidney disease research (compared to other diseases, such as cancer) in particular.
Two other recent events attest to the strength of DOM’s research mission and scholarly production. The School of Medicine’s celebration of Medical Education Week in late February and early March was capped off with a faculty poster session at the health sciences library, and DOM was well-represented, with nearly half the posters contributed by DOM faculty. And a well-attended K-Award Symposium, organized by DOM’s vice chair for research, Eric Houpt, and held on Thursday, March 3, recognized the research excellence of CV’s Michael Salerno and ID’s Tania Thomas.
I’m also proud of our joint efforts with the School of Medicine’s Office for Diversity in organizing and hosting the third annual “Inside UVA Medicine” event for Buford middle-schoolers. This event — run on two separate days in March, each attended by half of Buford’s 300-some 7th graders — takes a lot of coordination and volunteer efforts from many in DOM, SOM and the health system. Special thanks to Dawn Kidd and members of DOM’s Staff-Employee Advisory Council, who work especially hard to make this important outreach initiative a continued success.
Happy spring to all!
Mitch
Filed Under: Message from the Chair
Tags: DOM