Patient Centered-Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), created by Congress as part of the Affordable Care Act, provides grants for research projects that will give patients and their health care providers “a better understanding of the prevention, treatment and care options available, and the science that supports those options.”  PCORI has already provided a grant to help kidney patients understand all of their dialysis treatment options and also awarded a few other grants related to kidney disease research.  Not only is the research geared towards helping patients, but patients can actually participate in the research projects and help PCORI select which research applications to fund.

NKF and our volunteers have had roles in both research and grant application selection.  Late last year, PCORI awarded a grant to Arbor Research Collaborative for Health to study which factors are most important to patients, when choosing among various dialysis options. This study is under way and NKF is a key partner with Arbor on this project.  To learn more or to get involved, you can visit www.choosingdialysis.org.

In addition, PCORI recently announced it is accepting applications from the public to serve as reviewers for research applications. NKF alerted our membership to the opportunity and three NKF volunteers reported back to us that they were selected. These volunteers will have a role in determining which health research applications will make the most difference in patients’ lives and should therefore receive funding.  What’s especially exciting about this opportunity is that the input of all reviewers–patients, scientists and health care providers–is weighted equally, ensuring that patients have an important voice in the decisions.  To learn more about PCORI research, you can visit www.pcori.org

NKF is pleased to participate in this research and proud that our volunteers will draw from their own experiences to help shape broader research priorities to make healthcare work better for all patients.