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Five Ways to Make the Most of Kidney Week

By Samira Farouk posted 09-21-2018 02:33 PM

  

Every year, ASN’s Kidney Week is a packed conference with countless oral presentations, plenary sessions, poster sessions, exhibitions, social events, and more – and can be daunting for first-time attendees and trainees. So…where should you go and what should you do to get the most out of your trip to sunny San Diego? Here are 5 tips to getting the most out of Kidney Week as a trainee:

 

1)  Review the schedule in advance. If you don’t glance at the program for the week before hand, the meeting will be over before you have a chance to flip through it. Kidney Week can be broken down into two parts:  “Early Programs” (Oct 23 – 24) and “Annual Meeting” (Oct 25 – 27) Early Programs address a specific topic in nephrology and are held over 1-2 days and require early registration (register by October 17th for the advance registration rate).
For the Annual Meeting, review the line-ups for the basic/clinical science, translational, clinical practice, and special sessions. Make note of those that interest you (either using the Kidney Week app or paper if you’re more analog). To make the plenary sessions in the mornings, set your alarm early!

2)  Go on a few ASN Community Poster tours. The poster hall can be overwhelming, with hours of poster sessions each day and hundreds of posters per day. These guided poster tours are not only a great way to make your way through the hall in an organized way, but also a great way to network and meet co-trainees, faculty, and others. NephJC will also host poster tours, get on Twitter and follow @NephJC for more information. ASN Community Leaders will also be hosting poster tours.  Review that schedule here.  

3)  Attend/participate in the fellows-in-training bowl.
This unique event is held just for nephrology fellows, though anyone can attend.  This year’s competition spans two days and will culminate in an awards ceremony at the plenary session on Saturday, October 27th.

 4) Connect with the ASN community using Twitter and by visiting the Communities Lounges. By using Twitter (@ASNKidney)and the Kidney Week hashtag #KidneyWk, you’ll stay in the loop and connect with other conference attendees. The ASN Communities Lounge  - centrally located in the middle of the Exhibit Hall - will also give you the opportunity to connect with other trainees and network with members of the ASN community.  Not on Twitter? Take the first step by creating an account and joining the bustling nephrology social media community! 

5) Don’t forget to take advantage of the city. Most Kidney Week attendees are away from home during the conference. When you’re not attending lunch sessions, take advantage of San Diego’s food scene and make reservations to beat the lunch rush (hint: find some restaurants that excite your taste buds before you get there). When you need a break from the conference, be sure to take a look at what San Diego has to offer!
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