ABMS is a not-for profit organization that "assists 24 approved medical specialty boards in the development and use of standards in the ongoing evaluation and certification of physicians." Nephrology falls under the purview of the ABIM. ASN represents the interests of its members and aids them in obtaining and maintaining their certification.

Nephrology has 139 accredited nephrology training programs. ASN's Training Program Directors Executive Committee, led by Chair Donald E. Kohan, MD, PhD, works with the Residency Review Committee for Internal Medicine (RRC-IM) to develop, revise, and modify the guidelines. In the future, ASN plans to help training program directors (TPDs) develop uniform ways of addressing ACGME's six core competencies.

In 2007, nephrology joined the National Resident Matching Program's (NRMP's) Specialties Matching Service (SMS). SMS electronically matches training programs and future nephrology fellows based on their ranked choices. ASN provides guidance and acts as reference for SMS. As this document shows, in 95% of nephrology fellowship positions in the match filled.

Led by Mitch Rosner, MD, an ASN task force worked in conjunction with the National Board of Medical Examiners to create an Internet-based In-Training Examination for nephrology fellows. The second iteration of the test will be given April 8 and 9, 2010.

The Association of Subspecialty Professors (ASP) awarded a grant to ASN through the "Integrating Geriatrics into the Specialties of Internal Medicine: Moving Forward from Awareness to Action" project. ASN is using this grant to create an "Online Curriculum for Nephrology Fellows on Aging and the Kidney." Dimitiros G. Oreopoulos, MD, PhD, from Toronto Western Hospital, is leading the effort, which will address geriatrics-related issues in all aspects of nephrology. The curriculum will be available for use during the 2009-2010 fellowship year.

ASN advocates for public funding for graduate medical education (GME) through Medicare and Medicaid. In the FY 2008 Supplemental Appropriations Act, Congress put a moratorium on a proposed $1.78 billion cut in Medicaid funding for graduate medical education. ASN will monitor this situation, especially as the moratorium nears its end on April 1, 2009.

Fellows are given special treatment at ASN. The Society offers free membership (including free journal subscriptions) to fellows-in-training, and reduced registration at all of the Society's meetings. In the future, ASN will increase its online resources, create a fellows advisory group, and offer a career development course at Renal Week.

Internal medicine residents have the opportunity to receive travel awards and complementary registration for attendance at Renal Week. The deadline has passed for the 2008 program, but please check back next summer!

ASN also offers funding to nephrologists from Central and South America interested in a "mini-fellowship" at a United States medical institution. This program is done in partnership with the Sociedad Latinoamericana de Nefrologia e Hipertensión. This program, led by Tomas Berl, MD, and William Mitch, MD, has been a great success. Each of the 10 participants spend three weeks at their host institutions, observing parts of the American nephrology programs that are relevant to their work in countries such as Brazil, Peru, and Argentina, before attending Renal Week as guests of the Society.