Renal Medicine induction booklet was contributed by the following;
written by Dr Emily Pegg
reviewed by Dr John
updated by Dr Thomas Jenkins
Select the booklet titles below to expand the table to view more information.
Renal Team
Each week there is one consultant on-call for medicine and one consultant on-call for renal.
Consultants
| Consultant | Secretary | Extension |
|---|---|---|
|
Dr Kumar |
|
3432 |
|
Dr Rajendran |
|
3434 |
|
Dr John |
Jennie Homer |
3003 |
|
Dr Samual |
|
3434 |
OTHER MEDICAL STAFF
If the ward is fully staffed:
- One CT2
- One MTI doctor
- Two FY2s
- Two GP trainees
- One FY1
There are also 2 renal registrars, who are contactable via bleep (7208 or 7826), but are mainly based in the renal unit or taking ward referrals
Renal Ward
The job as the renal FY1 involves looking after renal and general medical patients on ward C1B. In addition, the hospital has a renal unit where patients receive dialysis as an inpatient or outpatient. Therefore, as the renal FY1 you may also be asked to review unwell patients on the renal unit or help the nurses with prescriptions.
Renal Dialysis Unit
There will be a lead nurse for the Haemodialysis unit every shift (ext 3384).
The renal day-case unit/CAPD unit (ext 3388) deals with peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) patients, day case procedures and ward discharge for follow-up blood tests etc
Consultants
Each week there is one consultant on-call for medicine and one consultant on-call for renal. The medical consultant will undertake consultant-led ward rounds on Mondays and Thursdays, and will see the medical patients (new and existing). On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, the medical consultant will see new medical patients who have come from ED, AMU or other wards and review other patients if required.
Each week there is a renal consultant on-call who will see any new patients with AKI, unwell renal patients or renal patients if their named consultant is not available. During the week the consultants will normally see their own renal patients on specific days related to their timetables.
Both the renal and medical consultants on-call are easily contactable by mobile through switchboard if you need any advice or help. You can also contact the renal secretary (numbers given are by each consultant’s name on the team page) who will be able to locate them if the mobile goes to voicemail and it is urgent.
Also, if a renal patient’s named consultant is present in the hospital you can contact them via their mobiles, if you have any problems or need their advice.
Ward Rounds
The day starts at 9:00am with a junior- or consultant-led ward round. It is advisable to start seeing the new patients first and to document your initial management plan. Your plan will be reviewed by the consultant as part of the ward round. Once completed the ward round, the team complete the jobs.
Before starting the job useful topic areas to read up on are: the management of AKI, monitoring CKD including AKI on CKD, and dialysis. Please use the opportunity for case based learning and discussion on or after the ward rounds. Once a month, the team could present a short summary of interesting cases and discuss management plans.
Tips for junior-led ward rounds:
- Document the patients background, current issues, observations, and recent blood test and investigation results
- Review the patient and document your findings
- Formulate a plan (the plan can be discussed with a more senior doctor or consultant if you are unsure).
Medications
You may be asked to go down to the renal department to prescribe medications for the nurses. Medications are prescribed on paper drug charts. The nurses will be able to guide you through what to prescribe.
Dialysis Patients
Haemodialysis patients receive dialysis three times a week (either Monday, Wednesday, Friday, or Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday). If you would like bloods for haemodialysis patients on these days, request the bloods in the usual way and inform the dialysis unit by phone; the nurses downstairs will take the bloods on dialysis.
Dialysis patients will go down to the renal unit for dialysis on set days either in the morning or afternoon. If the patient is in the renal unit in the morning you will have to review them in the afternoon when they return to the ward.
Renal Medicine - Learning Opportunities
eJournal Club
For the benefit of junior trainees, the renal journal club has been recently trialled in a new digital format, fully via email correspondence. The renal registrars have taken the lead to organise it every month on an alternating cycle. Two journal articles (ideally of RCTs) are forwarded to the renal team every month for reading and replying to a few questions on relevant take-home points. Discussions can happen via email (by replying to all) over the month and topics are possible to discuss in-person as well on the wards. Consultants provide moderation when necessary.
After a couple of weeks, the registrars will give a reminder on responses sought. They will also send a summary of key findings, limitations and practice points. Feedback is sought formally through a survey link. Following confirmation of responses, certificates are issued by email to claim for one hour of personal CPD points (category 3). The journal articles are attached via email and can be easily printed. The e-journal club works best to benefit all by active engagement.
Dietician Teaching Sessions
These sessions are provided by the dieticians and aimed for their team, however, the renal team is always welcome to join. It is important to be familiar with the diet that renal patients require as it has many adjustments due to their poor renal function. It is additionally very beneficial to become familiar with the supplementation that is available for renal patients. There are many medication options and it is important to be aware of the appropriate supplementation.
Dialysis Unit
The renal juniors are welcome at the Dialysis Unit, which is located on the ground floor. The nursing staff are very friendly and open to teaching the juniors about different types of dialysis (peritoneal vs haemodialysis) and the common side effects which may occur. It is a useful learning opportunity as dialysis patients frequently return back to the C1 ward.
There are opportunities to go to theatre to see insertions of dialysis lines; let the renal registrar or renal consultant know if this is of interest to you.
Health and Wellbeing
Staff that are happy and thriving in their working environment will inevitably have a more enjoyable experience in the workplace, contributing to the provision of excellent health care for all of our patients. The Dudley Group recognises our commitment to staff wellbeing in a variety of ways.
Select the link below to find out more how the Trust can support you.
