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Would you like to share your views to help improve programs and services for patients, or help researchers gain a better understanding of the challenges of living with kidney disease? You are at the right place! Browse down below to see current opportunities.


Current opportunities

  • Food Insecurity in Canadian Households with Children Who have Undergone Liver, Kidney, or Multi-Visceral Transplantation

    Food Insecurity in Canadian Households with Children who have Undergone Liver, Kidney, or Multi-Visceral Transplantation

    Overview

    Food insecurity – a lack of safe and adequate access to healthy food – affects numerous households across Canada. As a result of limited access to food, children in these households can experience significant health impacts, like poor diet quality, disrupted growth and development, and poor mental health. These factors are amplified for children who have undergone transplantation. However, little is known about food insecurity in households with children who have undergone transplantation.

    Researchers out of the University of Alberta aim to address this gap in knowledge. They hope to:

    1. Define what contributes to household food insecurity and
    2. Understand the impact food insecurity has on children’s mental health, diet quality, and quality of life.
    3. Identify/develop strategies and interventions to address food insecurity in Canadian households with children who receive organ transplants

    Participation

    If you would like to participate in this study, please complete the 10-15 minute survey in your preferred language:

    Note: At the end of the survey, you can leave your email address if you’re interested in joining the phase 2 of the study (a 2.5-hr interview).

    Eligibility

    • Be a parent or caregiver to a child or youth (0-19 years old) who has received a transplant (liver, kidney, or other organs).
    • Be a youth (12-19 years old) who has received a solid organ transplant

    The study is open to participants nation-wide.

    Study Contact

    If you have any questions, please contact Diana Mager at [email protected].

    This study was approved by the University of Alberta’s Research Ethics Board: Pro00144464

  • The Hidden Link Between Sex, Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and Medial Arterial Calcification (MAC)

    Overview

    • Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have a greater risk of heart and vascular health issues as well.
    • Medial arterial calcification (MAC) affects up to 80% of CKD patients and causes the arteries to stiffen which can lead to further cardiovascular and kidney health complications if left untreated.
    • MAC is still poorly understood in CKD patients, especially the potential differences between men and women.

    Both kidney disease and cardiovascular disease can have sex-specific differences in development and presentation, making it crucial to understand these differences to inform earlier diagnosis and develop better treatments.

    Researchers at McGill University are looking to address this gap in our knowledge and need your help to do so. They are looking for persons with lived experience to collaborate on their research and provide an important patient perspective to ensure their research is relevant to the patient community.

    Eligibility

    • Have kidney disease and a cardiovascular health condition(s)
    • Located in Canada

    Participating can be done in English or French.

    Participation

    As a patient partner, you will be asked to review current study materials and participate in a minimum of one 1-hour meeting with the research team (in person or virtual). Follow up with the research team will be done regularly after the project is funded.

    As a patient partner, you will help:

    • Inform research questions and priorities
    • Strengthen grant applications
    • Discuss results when available
    • Help knowledge translation (including the opportunity to collaborate on published papers)

    Study Contact

    If you would like to participate in this study or have any questions, please contact Marta Cerruti at [email protected].

    Note: this study has not yet received ethics approval or been funded. It is in the preliminary stages and needing patient partners to help fully define the project.

  • Addressing critical issues and emerging TheRapEutics in TrAnsplanTation for COVID-19 (TREAT-COVID)

    TREAT-COVID Study. Participate to improve mental health and wellness, clinical policies, experiences, and pandemic research for our transplant community.

    Overview

    • Despite vaccination, transplant recipients remain at high risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes.
    • Recipients, families, and caregivers are also at higher risk of experiencing extreme stress and mental health concerns and bearing additional financial burdens.
    • Transplant recipients are often excluded from studies on COVID-19 due to challenges with study design, creating a lack of information and data.

    For these reasons, the TREAT-COVID study aims to address these barriers by understanding how COVID-19 continues to affect child and/or adult transplant recipients and their families or caregivers living in Canada. This is in hopes of creating a flexible national plan to inform better policies and improve patient health.

    For more information about this study, please visit: https://cdtrp.ca/en/treatcovid/

    Eligibility

    • Be an organ or stem cell transplant recipient, or
    • Be a caregiver of an organ or stem cell transplant recipient*
    • Be followed by one of the participating transplant centres

    *Please note that for a family member/caregiver wanting to enroll, the transplant recipient they care for must be enrolled in the study first.

    Study Participation

    Participating in this study will provide useful information about COVID-19 treatments and issues to policymakers, clinicians, and patients and their families.

    This study is currently open to participants in British Columbia, Northern Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec. Please enrol through the link associated with your region:

    Study Contact

    If you have any questions about this study, please contact Manuel Escoto at [email protected].

    This study was approved by the University of Alberta Research Ethics Board (lead institution): Pro00131530

  • Menopause and Caregiving: A Qualitative Exploration

    Overview

    Menopause can cause significant physical and mental health changes, affecting one’s daily life and activities. These feelings and changes can be amplified when the person going through menopause is also in a caregiver role. In addition, the health and well-being of caregivers is strongly related to their ability to provide care and, as such, the health of the person they are caring for.

    Yet, many women also feel unprepared for menopause and unsupported by healthcare providers during this transition in their health. This demonstrates a need for more effective support strategies to help women navigate menopause and caregiver responsibilities.

    Understanding the impact and experiences of menopause on caregivers can lead to the development of new tools and strategies to improve the quality of life of both caregivers and those they care for.

    Researchers from the University of Toronto are aiming to address needs by interviewing menopausal women in caregiver roles to understand where and how support is needed. Eligible individuals will participate in one 45-60-minute structured interview with a member of the study team via online video conferencing platforms.

    This study is available in English only and will close on June 30, 2025.

    Eligibility

    To be eligible to participate in this study, you must:

    • Identify as a female
    • Be a caregiver of a person or persons with a disability or chronic illness
    • Be at menopause (defined as 1-6 years post a final menstrual cycle).

    The study is open to participants nation-wide.

    Study Contact

    If you would like to participate in this study or have any questions, please contact Trevor Eygenraam and Erica Friesen at [email protected].

    This study was approved by the University of Toronto’s Research Ethics Board: Protocol #: 50589

  • Food insecurity and Diet Quality in Adults with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)

    As food costs rise in Canada, many turn to cheaper and more readily available processed foods, which can be high in salt and sugar and increase the risk of chronic diseases. Researchers at the University of Alberta are studying the impact of food insecurity on the diets and kidney health of Canadian adults with CKD.

    Your participation will help inform interventions and policies to prevent food insecurity and its health implications in this population.

    To be eligible, you must:

    • Be between 18-80 years old
    • Be able to provide consent
    • Have a diagnosis of stage 1-5 chronic kidney disease
    • Be able to communicate in English
    • Not be on dialysis

    Participants will be asked to complete a 3-day food record, collect receipts for two weeks’ worth of food, answer questionnaires about their food habits and quality of life, and attend online interviews with the study investigators. The total time required is estimated to be 3 hours.

    This study is only available in English and will continue until December 2025. It has received approval through the Health Research Ethics Board – Health Panel, University of Alberta (Pro00132239).

    Should you have any questions, please contact:

    Dr. Diana Mager PhD RD
    780-492-7687
    [email protected]

  • Become a Member of the Home First Dialysis Project Study Team

    If you or someone you know has experience with home dialysis OR have advanced chronic kidney disease (stage 4 or 5) and are not on dialysis, you are invited to be a patient partner in an ongoing study at the University of Manitoba.

    The Home First project aims to provide comprehensive support and education to CKD patients, with dedicated experts by their side to guide them through their healthcare journey. The goal of the program is to offer everyone the opportunity to experience home dialysis and help address barriers that may exist.

    As a patient partner you would be considered a member of the project research team. Your contributions may include reviewing educational material, sharing your experience with home dialysis, or helping guide the project.

    Patient partners must be able to speak English and be a resident of Manitoba.

    This study will be ongoing until 2027.

    Should you have any questions, please contact the research team:

    Rachel Girimonte
    1(204)-632-3667
    [email protected]

    This study received approval from the Health Research Ethics Board (HREB), study number H2023: 359.

  • VIRTUAL PATIENT ADVOCACY VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY
    MEDSKL is a free, open-access medical education platform that is recruiting patient volunteers to share their story with medical students through a live webinar series called "Patient Perspectives". This is an opportunity for individuals in The Kidney Foundation community to teach future physicians about kidney disease from the perspective of their lived experience. The webinar will be 1 hour in length and hosted on Zoom on a weeknight evening of your choice. If you are interested in this opportunity, please sign-up using the online form or contact MEDSKL at www.medskl.com/contact.
  • Exploring Patients Knowledge of Precision Medicine & Biobanking
    Are you at least 18 years old? Have you been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease? 

    Researchers at the University of Calgary are exploring patients’ knowledge, perceptions and experiences of precision medicine and biobanking. The findings of this research may help to enhance patient engagement and awareness of precision medicine and biobanking research

    Researchers are looking for patients with chronic kidney disease who are willing to be interviewed about these topics. The interviews will be conducted either by phone or by Skype/Zoom/Google Hangouts and will take approximately 30-45 minutes. 

    In appreciation of participant’s time, a $25 gift card will be provided. Please note that your views will be confidential and no personally identifiable information will be associated with responses.

    If you are willing to participate in this study, please contact:
    Mohammad Haque
    Masters Student at University of Calgary 
    Email: [email protected]
    Phone: 403-835-7225