New York, NY — April 3, 2018 — Andrew S. Narva, M.D., has been selected by the National Kidney Foundation as the recipient of its 2018 Public Service Award.
Dr. Narva is the director of the National Kidney Disease Education Program at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health. He also previously served as director of the Kidney Disease Program for the Indian Health Service, where he was instrumental in instituting interventions that halved the rate of diabetes-related kidney failure among tribes.
“For his entire career, Dr. Narva has served as a visionary leader, working tirelessly to educate others and instituting new models of care, such as the use of telemedicine to deliver care to patients in remote areas,” said Michael Choi, M.D., president and chair of the NKF Scientific Advisory Board. “These innovations serve as models to improve outcomes in communities experiencing a growing burden of diabetes and its most dreaded complication, kidney disease.”
The NKF Public Service Award honors those who have dedicated their careers to public service and who have helped shape public policies or government programs that improve outcomes for kidney patients. The award will be made to Dr. Narva at the NKF 2018 Spring Clinical Meetings to be held April 11-14, in Austin, Texas.
“I am honored to accept this award,” said Dr. Narva. “I am grateful to my patients and colleagues in Indian Health Service who taught me so much and to the National Kidney Disease Education Program for providing the opportunity to share some of what I learned about working with an interdisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, dieticians, behavioral health specialists and community health workers to improve patients’ lives.”
Dr. Narva continues to serve as the chief clinical consultant for nephrology for Indian Health Service. He also continues to provide care for patients at Zuni Pueblo through a telemedicine clinic and at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
Among many leadership roles, Dr. Narva has served as a member of the Medical Review Board of End Stage Renal Disease Network 15, and on the NKF Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative Work Group on Diabetes in CKD. He has also received numerous awards, including IHS Physician Leader of the Year and the U.S. Public Health Service Distinguished Service Medal, the highest recognition awarded to commissioned officers.
NKF Spring Clinical Meetings
For the past 27 years, nephrology healthcare professionals from across the country have come to NKF’s Spring Clinical Meetings to learn about the newest developments related to all aspects of nephrology practice; network with colleagues; and present their research findings. The NKF Spring Clinical Meetings are designed for meaningful change in the multidisciplinary healthcare teams’ skills, performance, and patient health outcomes. It is the only conference of its kind that focuses on translating science into practice for the entire healthcare team.
Kidney Disease Facts
30 million American adults are estimated to have chronic kidney disease—and most aren’t aware of it. 1 in 3 American adults are at risk for chronic kidney disease. Risk factors for kidney disease include diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity and family history of kidney failure. People of African American, Hispanic, Native American, Asian or Pacific Islander descent are at increased risk for developing the disease. African Americans are 3 times more likely than Whites, and Hispanics are nearly 1.5 times more likely than non-Hispanics to develop end-stage renal disease (kidney failure).
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is the largest, most comprehensive and longstanding organization dedicated to the awareness, prevention and treatment of kidney disease. For more information about NKF visit www.kidney.org.