Rudolph A. Rodriguez, MD, Chair
Dr. Rodriguez, a board-certified internist and nephrologist, is the Director of the Hospital & Specialty Medicine Service Line at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System and a Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of Washington. As a clinician scholar, his academic career focused on nephrology fellowship education along with scholarly work on issues related to vulnerable populations.
Dr. Rodriguez serves as a member of the American Board of Internal Medicine Nephrology Board. He is the Chair of the Veteran Affairs Nephrology Field Advisory Board. He served on the American Society of Nephrology Training Program Director’s Executive Committee.
Dr. Rodriguez attended Stanford University and earned his medical degree at the Charles Drew/UCLA Medical Education Program at the University of California, Los Angeles. He completed his internal medicine residency at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, and his nephrology fellowship training at the University of California, San Francisco.
As of July 2023, Dr. Rodriguez reported the following external relationships:
Dr. Rodriguez serves in significant roles with the following organization, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- Veterans Affairs, serving as Chair, of the Field Advisory Committee, without compensation
Deborah B. Adey, MD
Dr. Adey is a transplant nephrologist and the Medical Director of the Kidney Transplant program at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She had the honor of participating in all aspects of transplant nephrology from donor evaluations, pre-transplant evaluations, in-hospital care, and post-transplant follow-up. She has been the site fellowship director for general nephrology at UCSF for a few years, then started the transplant nephrology fellowship program at UCSF which she ran for seven years. Dr. Adey initially became board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology in 1996, and was recertified in 2006 and 2016 in both Internal Medicine and Nephrology.
On a national level, she has been the chair of the Transplant Nephrology Accreditation Program for the American Society of Transplantation (AST) and subsequently the Chair of the board of managers for the Transplant Nephrology Fellowship Accreditation Program, an LLC subsidiary of the AST. She serves as a member of the American Board of Internal Medicine Nephrology Board.
Dr. Adey received her medical degree from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. She completed her nephrology fellowships at the University of Vermont followed by another two years of nephrology at Mayo Clinic Rochester, where she completed her research in protein metabolism in chronic kidney disease and focused clinically on kidney transplantation. She did a post-doctoral year of transplant, as this was before the days of transplant nephrology fellowships.
As of May 2023, Dr. Adey reported the following external relationships:
Funding for clinical trial expenses and staff, paid to the University of California, San Francisco, from the following companies:
- Hansa
- Natera, Inc.
Dr. Adey also provides talks at the American Society of Transplantation annual meeting.
Linda Awdishu, PharmD
Dr. Awdishu is Professor and Chair of Clinical Pharmacy and Director of Interprofessional Education and Simulation at the University of California, San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.
She developed and currently practices in the Joint Commission certified UCSD Kidney Disease Program, a multidisciplinary clinic involving a nephrologist, pharmacist, social worker, dietitian and nurse providing care for patients with CKD stage 2-5. She serves as a member of the Internal Medicine Nephrology Board; she teaches in the third -year pharmacy curriculum chairing the therapeutics overseeing simulations for second and third year pharmacy students.
Dr. Awdishu is the recipient of numerous teaching awards from pharmacy students and residents as well as the UCSD Academic Senate Distinguished Teaching Award. Her research program involves pharmacokinetics and pharmacogenomics of drugs in kidney disease. She co-directed The International Drug Induced Renal Injury Consortium (DIRECT) in collaboration with The International Serious Adverse Event Consortium. The DIRECT study is investigating the genetic basis of serious drug induced renal injury, through a collaborative network comprised of leading clinical research centers from around the world. She is a co-investigator in the UAB-UCSD O'Brien Center for Acute Kidney Injury Research studying new novel biomarkers of acute kidney injury.
Dr. Awdishu completed her Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy from the University of Toronto and completed a masters of advanced studies in clinical research from the University of California, San Diego in 2007. She completed her doctor of pharmacy from the University of Colorado in 2008.
As of May 2024, Dr. Awdishu reported the following external relationships:
Consulting on design of new drugs or devices, clinical trials, the use of specific agents or other research-related activities for the following companies, with compensation for travel expenses and honoraria:
- MediBeacon
Funding for salary support, paid to the University of California, San Diego, from the following nonprofit health care-related organizations:
- The National Institutes of Health, for a University of Alabama, Birmingham-University of California, San Diego O'Brien Center grant
Dr. Awdishu serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The Acute Disease Quality Initiative, receiving reimbursement for travel expenses
Dr. Awdishu also reported receiving free registration to the American Society of Nephrology Kidney Week Early Program.
Edward V. Hickey III
Mr. Hickey is the President of the American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP) and an attorney with O’Melveny & Myers, an international, 800-lawyer firm with 15 offices in the world’s financial and political centers. He is a member of the Litigation Department and Director of the firm’s eDiscovery staff attorneys, a role in which he leads all O’Melveny staff attorney operations firmwide. He served as an infantry officer in the Marine Corps as a lieutenant with postings in Quantico and Camp Pendleton. His distinguished public service career includes posts on Capitol Hill as an administrative assistant, a special assistant at the Department of Commerce and, following the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, as the Senior Advisor for Homeland Security for the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) under former President George W. Bush. At OPM, Mr. Hickey also served as liaison to Veteran Service Organizations nationwide, including the Vietnam Veterans of America, AMVETS, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion. Mr. Hickey coordinated extensively with elected leaders and staff in the U.S. House and Senate as well as the White House to represent veteran stakeholder interests in the preservation of veteran’s legal rights during reforms to U.S. civil service laws. He is a recipient of a Silver Helmet Award from AMVETS.
In addition to his role at O’Melveny & Myers, Mr. Hickey is actively involved with community service efforts in California through the Inner City Law Center of Los Angeles, which services veterans and their families in the Los Angeles area. He is also active in the Armed Forces Committee and Veterans Legal Service Project of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, which works to identify and address opportunities to assist veterans, active military personnel and reservists with their legal needs.
As a fellow kidney patient, Mr. Hickey has been involved with AAKP since 2016 as a director-at-large, secretary, vice president and currently as president of the organization. Since 2017, Mr. Hickey has served as Chair of AAKP’s Veterans Health Initiative (VHI). This effort focuses on veterans and military families whose lives have been impacted by the unique burdens of kidney disease. The VHI supports continued veteran access to medical benefits they are legally entitled to receive. This includes the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) comprehensive and nationally acclaimed kidney disease prevention and treatment services. Through the VHI, he has the privilege of representing AAKP on numerous VA research projects and, in 2023, spearheaded a formal partnership between AAKP and the VA to collaborate on kidney care.
Mr. Hickey is a 2020 recipient of the Presidential Volunteer Service Award Gold Level and received the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.
As of May 2024, Dr. Hickey reported the following external relationships:
Dr. Hickey serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The American Association of Kidney Patients, President, without compensation.
Janice P. Lea, MD, MSc, FASN
Dr. Lea is Professor of Medicine at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia and is board-certified in Nephrology and Hypertension. Dr. Lea is the Clinical Director of Nephrology and of Telenephrology, as well as Chief Medical Director of Emory Dialysis. She has been designated as a Master Clinician at Emory Healthcare and serves as Chief of Staff at Emory University Hospital Midtown. Dr. Lea's research and clinical expertise are in hypertension, chronic kidney disease, kidney health disparities, home dialysis, and overall outcomes of end-stage renal disease patients. Dr. Lea currently is Principal Investigator (PI) for a PCORI grant entitled: "Enhancing Patient Engagement in CKD through Peer mentorship", and previously served as the Emory PI for the NIH- AASK Study (African-American Study of Hypertension and Kidney Disease). She is an active member of the American Society of Nephrology and an executive board member of the American Association of Kidney Patients. She recently received a Presidential Silver Medal Award for her kidney patient advocacy efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic and was appointed to the American Board of Internal Medicine Nephrology Board in 2022. Dr. Lea also has been named one of Atlanta's Top Doctors for the last 10 years
She earned her medical degree at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and completed her residency in internal medicine and a nephrology fellowship at Emory University affiliated hospitals. She also received a master’s of science degree in clinical research from Emory's School of Public Health.
As of March 2024, Dr. Lea reported the following external relationships:
Funding for clinical trial expenses and staff, paid to Emory University, from the following companies:
- Vertex
Dr. Lea serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The American Association of Kidney Patients, board member, without compensation
John C. Lieske, MD
Dr. Lieske is Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, and the Director of the Renal Function Laboratory in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology. He is also currently Principal Investigator for the Mayo Clinic O’Brien Urology Research Center, Assistant Director for the Rare Kidney Stone Consortium (Director of the Dent Disease component), and Principal Investigator for the Mayo NIH Nephrology Training Grant. He has a longstanding interest in urinary proteomics and nephrolithiasis, including NIH-funded projects to investigate inhibitors of crystal aggregation, growth, and adhesion to tubular cells; epidemiology of nephrolithiasis; genetics of nephrolithiasis; and mechanisms of enteric hyperoxaluria.
As director of the Renal Function Lab, Dr. Lieske has also developed expertise regarding renal markers of renal disease including tandem-MS based assays for urinary biomarkers and validation of newer markers of injury and kidney function (e.g., cystatin C, NGAL). Dr. Lieske previously conducted clinical trials regarding the role of diet and probiotics in patients with and without enteric hyperoxaluria. He has also studied the epidemiology of enteric hyperoxaluria and kidney disease after bariatric surgery. In Project 2 of the Mayo Clinic O’Brien Urology Research Center he is keenly interested in the biology or stone pathogenesis, including the role of the urinary microbiome.
Dr. Lieske received his bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from Northwestern University and his medical degree from the University of Chicago. He completed his residency and internship at Emory University and fellowships in clinical nephrology and research nephrology at the University of Chicago.
Funding for clinical trial expenses, staff, and salary support, paid to the Mayo Clinic, from the following companies:
- Allena, study of an oxalate-degrading enzyme in hyperoxaluric kidney stone formers.
- OxThera, for a trial of oxalobacter to treat primary hyperoxaluria.
- Siemens, for a clinical trial.
- Dicerna, for a clinical trial.
As of March 2024, Dr. Lieske reported the following external relationships:
Funding for clinical trial expenses, staff and salary support, paid to the Mayo Clinic, from the following companies:
- Alnylam, for a clinical trial on potential siRNA therapy for primary hyperoxaluria
- Biomarin, for a clinical trial
- Novobiome, for a clinical trial
- Novo Nordisk, for a clinical trial
- Synlogic, for a clinical trial
Service on data and safety monitoring boards for the following companies, without compensation:
- Alnylam, for a Phase I/II study
Service on a research-related expert panel or advisory board for the following companies, with honoraria:
- Alnylam
- Arbor
- Biomarin
- Cantera
- Dicerna
- Federation Bio
- Intellia
- Mirum
- Novobiome
- Novo Nordisk
- Ofran
- Synlogic
Dr. Lieske serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The Dent Disease Foundation, Scientific Advisory Board, member, without compensation
- The Oxalosis and Hyperoxaluria Foundation, Scientific Advisory Board, member, without compensation
Matthew A. Sparks, MD
Dr. Sparks is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Director of the Nephrology Fellowship Program at Duke University, and a staff physician at the Durham VA Health Care System in Durham, North Carolina. He also serves as Lead of the Society for Early Education Scholars (SEEDS) program in the Duke University Department of Medicine. He is board certified in Nephrology.
Dr. Sparks’ research interest is in the pathogenesis of hypertension, chronic kidney disease and pulmonary hypertension. His research has been funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the American Heart Association. He is also interested in leveraging social media for medical education.
He is a founding faculty member and program director of the Nephrology Social Media Collective (NSMC) Internship and a member of the Board of Directors of the Nephrology Journal Club (NephJC), a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing free online medical education in nephrology. Dr. Sparks is also the cocreator of NephMadness and a faculty lead of the Renal Fellow Network. He is a member of several national committees spanning the American Society of Nephrology, the National Kidney Foundation and the American Heart Association. He also serves as Education Director for KIDNEYcon, an annual hands-on conference in Little Rock, Arkansas, dedicated to advances in nephrology.
Dr. Sparks received his medical degree from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine, where he also completed his residency and served as chief resident. He completed his fellowship in nephrology at Duke University School of Medicine.
As of May 2024, Dr. Sparks reported the following external relationships:
Work as an author or editor for the following companies, with compensation as listed:
- Elsevier, receiving compensation as an editor for Nephrology Secrets
Dr. Sparks serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The American Society of Nephrology, Kidney360 Editorial Board; Director of Journals Portfolios, receiving honoraria
- The American Heart Association, Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease Leadership Committee; Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease Membership and Communications Committee; Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease SKIL (Education) Committee, without compensation
- The American Journal of Kidney Diseases, Editorial Board, member, without compensation
- The National Kidney Foundation, North Carolina Medical Advisory Board; Kidney Medicine Editorial Board, without compensation
- Nephrology Journal Club, Founder; Board of Directors, member, without compensation
Dr. Sparks also reported that he is the Associate Program Director of the Duke University Nephrology Fellowship Program and consults with Dragonfly Therapeutics.
Sana Waheed, MD
Dr. Waheed is board certified in both Internal Medicine and Nephrology and is an Associate Professor at Emory University School of Medicine. Her clinical work is based out of Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta which caters to the underserved population in the area. Prior to that, she has practiced at Piedmont Kidney Institute in Atlanta. Dr. Waheed has served as the Medical Director of the Home Dialysis Program at Wisconsin Dialysis Institute. In addition, she has been involved in improving the clinical care delivered to patients by serving on the medical review committee for the end stage renal disease networks. She is actively involved in developing material and initiatives to decrease infection risks in dialysis units as the chair of the Quality, Assessment, Improvement and Education workgroup of the Nephrologists Transforming Dialysis. Safety, which is a collaborative effort between the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the American Society of Nephrology (ASN).
Dr. Waheed has also been actively involved in education, both locally and nationally. She was the Director of the Medical School Renal Pathophysiology course and Associate Fellowship Director at University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin. Through her involvement with ASN, she has been actively involved in shaping the future of nephrology workforce as a part of the ASN workforce and training committee. In addition, she developed questions for the nephrology in training exams and kidney self-assessment program.
Her research interests include kidney disease in HIV patients, peritoneal dialysis and issues involving nephrology education for trainees.
Dr. Waheed received her medical degree from the Aga Khan University in Pakistan and then completed her internal medicine residency at University of Cincinnati and fellowship at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.
As of March 2024, Dr. Waheed reported the following ongoing external relationships:
Dr. Waheed serves in significant roles with the following organizations, receiving reimbursement or compensation as listed:
- The American Society of Nephrology, Quality Assessment, Improvement, and Education Steering Committee, chair, without compensation