New priorities in nephrology. Prof. Beata Naumnik is vice-president of the Polish Society of Nephrology
During the 15th Congress of the Polish Society of Nephrology in Katowice, new authorities of the association were elected. The function of vice-president was assumed by prof. Beata Naumnik from the Medical University of Białystok. She announces far-reaching activities - from early CKD diagnostics to the promotion of peritoneal dialysis.
On June 12–14, 2025, the 15th Congress of the Polish Society of Nephrology took place in Katowice – the most important cyclical event of the nephrology community in Poland. During the General Assembly of Members, new authorities were elected for the term of office 2025–2028. Prof. Marcin Adamczak from the Medical University of Silesia became the President of the Polish Society of Nephrology, and the function of vice-president was entrusted to Prof. Beata Naumnik, head of the 1st Clinic of Nephrology, Transplantology and Internal Medicine with the Dialysis Center of the Medical University of Białystok.
As announced by Prof. Naumnik, the Society’s goals extend far beyond the next three years.
- We will sign the so-called Katowice Declaration (due to the location of the PTN meeting). It will not be a plan for the next term, but a decalogue of actions for at least three terms - announces Prof. Naumnik.
At the heart of the new strategy are two main directions: prevention and quality of treatment.
One of the priorities will be to improve the detection of chronic kidney disease (CKD), which often develops asymptomatically.
- It cannot be that 9 out of 10 people with chronic kidney disease do not know that they have the disease. That is why our goal is to increase the detection rate to 50% - says Professor Naumnik.
As part of its preventive activities, PTN is planning, among other things, educational programs in schools. In Białystok, a pilot program called “Kidneys without Faults” has already been launched, aimed at high school students – the initiative has the potential to be implemented nationwide.
The second key point of the strategy is improving the quality of renal replacement therapy. Prof. Naumnik, who calls herself an "ambassador of peritoneal dialysis", wants to focus on this method.
- I am an ambassador for peritoneal dialysis and this is something that is absolutely within reach. We do not have to change much to qualify more patients for home dialysis, patient-friendly. This would be my personal goal - peritoneal dialysis, its popularization, priority and the so-called PDF (peritoneal dialysis first) - she said.
In her opinion, home dialysis is not only a safe but also a more comfortable form of therapy for many patients, and its wider implementation requires only minor organizational changes.
The PTN vice-president also points to the urgent need for better financing of nephrological procedures. Currently, many of them are – as he emphasizes – seriously underestimated. Changes are also necessary in the area of transplantology – the aim is to improve the system of reporting for kidney transplantation and its greater efficiency.
Updated: 19/06/2025 09:44
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