NEPHwork: Driving Trainee-Led Collaborative Research and Audit in Nephrology

NEPHwork is a trainee-led research and audit collaborative supported by the UK Kidney Association which aims to design and deliver UK-wide multicentre projects utilising the trainee-led collaborative research model.

This model works on the principle that, by harnessing the combined power of specialty trainees across the country, an important research or service delivery question can be addressed at scale with little more effort at an individual level than is required for a local audit. Importantly, all trainees who contribute to NEPHwork projects are recognised through collaborator authorship on all outputs.

The model has yielded high-impact outputs across a breadth of specialties (e.g. STARSurg in General Surgery, BURST in Urology) and NEPHwork are successfully emulating this in Nephrology. Collectively, NEPHwork promotes collaborative working, supports access to impactful project opportunities for residents across the country in areas relevant to everyday practice, and facilitates audit and research skill acquisition.

NEPHwork Projects

NEPHwork’s first project, undertaken in 2021, was a national audit of acute kidney injury (AKI) care in over 950 patients across 24 NHS trusts in England and Wales. Despite the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic, over 60 nephrologists came together and delivered a detailed and insightful analysis of AKI trends, resulting in two publications and a UK Renal Registry report.

Building on this success, NEPHwork’s second project chose to evaluate native kidney biopsy practice patterns across the UK. IGNITE (InvestigatinG kidNey bIopsy pracTices and outcomEs) collected data on over 1,700 patients undergoing native kidney biopsy in 32 kidney centres across the UK and closed in October 2024. Alongside academic outputs, we are really keen that our projects lead to material improvements in service delivery and patient care in a timely fashion; to this end, NEPHwork are collaborating with the UKKA Diagnostic Interventional Nephrology Special Interest Group to support the development of projects and guidance to improve native kidney biopsy practice across the UK.

NEPHwork Committee

The current Committee is co-chaired by Dr Sacha Moore (Resident Doctor Co-Chair) and Prof James Burton (Consultant Co-Chair) and has recently expanded to promote closer working between adult and paediatric nephrology. Alongside a collaboration with the UKKA Sustainable Kidney Care Committee, NEPHwork are excited to have a session at UK Kidney Week 2025 in a Dragons’ Den style; it will give the chance for Nephrology SpRs from across the country to pitch their ideas for the next NEPHwork national project.

If you’re interested in finding out more about NEPHwork’s activities or would like to get involved with our projects, please get in touch via nephwork@ukkidney.org. We’d also be delighted to welcome you to our UK Kidney Week session – we hope to see you there!

- Dr Sacha Moore (Co-Chair) and Dr Toby Humphrey (immediate past Co-Chair)