Transforming Kidney Care through Skill and Workforce Development: the North Carolina Kidney Technology Incubator (NC-KTI)

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ABSTRACT The central goal of this R-25 Research Education Program is the creation of a pipeline of innovative and talented problem solvers who can (a) identify the unmet clinical needs of patients suffering from kidney disease, including current and future challenges, opportunities and gaps in kidney care (b) create innovative patient centered solutions (diagnostics, therapeutics, patient centered tools) for kidney disease patients (c) understand the importance of a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach to kidney disease innovation that goes all the way from ideation and investment, to experimental and clinical data, to regulation and reimbursement pathways (while at the same time addressing the inherent disparities in kidney care) and (d) leverage the current kidney innovation landscape to develop solutions that actually get to patients so that kidney disease patients will no longer have to look at the parade of therapies for other diseases and wonder “if not me then who and if not now then when…” We plan to achieve these goals by (a) creating a pipeline of diverse, multidisciplinary and talented problem solvers (b) developing a summer kidney immersion program (skills development) (c) forming multi-disciplinary problem-solving teams (coached by multi-disciplinary mentors) that do research projects to address unmet clinical needs and (d) nurturing an alumni and retention program for networking and career opportunities respectively. In summary, we will create a holistic, patient centered, multi-disciplinary, team-based approach to problem solving in the kidney technology area, using a robust pipeline of young, innovative and creative trainees. Most importantly, we plan to invest in mentorship and professional development, that will hopefully keep these trainees in the kidney technology innovation area; and by doing so transform the way that we will care for patients with kidney disease in the future.