Research/Scholarly Activities - Transplant Nephrology Fellowship Program

Ochsner’s Transplant Nephrology Fellowship provides fellows with opportunities to participate in clinical research, quality improvement initiatives and scholarly projects that advance the field of kidney transplantation. Fellows work closely with experienced faculty mentors to contribute to research presentations, publications and national meetings while gaining experience in transplant outcomes, immunosuppression management and innovative approaches to patient care. The program’s high-volume transplant center and multidisciplinary environment support meaningful academic engagement and professional development throughout the fellowship year.

• In addition to the daily clinical activities, fellows will have an opportunity to do research/scholarly activities and to publish abstracts and other publications (case report or case series).
• The fellow is also welcome to participate in pharmacologic company sponsored research. Under faculty mentorship the fellow will participate in the design of the research project: including the development of hypothesis to be tested, appropriate methodology and results and statistical analysis.
• Faculty members will provide the background reading and theory for research projects.
• The IRB has a series of lectures titled “Responsible Conduct in Research” lecture series, which are given on a monthly basis the second Tuesday of the month at 12 p.m. In the lecture the speaker usually addresses FDA regulation, legal and ethical aspects of research. These lectures will be incorporated into the core curriculum for the transplant nephrology fellowship.
• All the trainees participating in research are required to take the CITI (Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative) course for the protection of human subjects. Completion of the CITI course is one of the requirements for protocol approval by the IRB. Ochsner Health provides access to the required training through an interactive online tutorial.
• We have a strong general nephrology fellowship training program (with six positions) which was approved by the ACGME in 2012 and underwent a very successful site visit in June 2015. Each general nephrology fellow rotates one month per year (a total two months during the entire training). We also have nephrology fellows from Louisiana State University (LSU).
• We maintain an excellent relation with both programs and are delighted to provide a very comprehensive educational experience to both institutions. As a testimony two of our graduates chose to pursue a career in transplant nephrology and obtained positions at top class institutions in the United States.
• Due to the transplant volume in the last five years, in-patient census, outpatient referrals, transfers from other institutions, transplant allograft biopsies and outpatient follow ups we have no doubt that all the trainees will have enough patients to meet their educational needs. Staff transplant nephrologists will meet with the rotating fellow and transplant fellow to discuss patient assignment on a daily basis. New consults will be distributed in a sequential fashion to maintain balance and fairness. In the case more than one fellow is on the in-patient service, the new consults will be rotated on a daily basis, as well as the new transplant to maintain the continuity of care throughout the period rotating in the acute care setting.