Pediatric Center of Excellence in Nephrology

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia established the Pediatric Center of Excellence in Nephrology (PCEN) with funding from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to promote and develop clinical trial research with a focus on nephrology. The PCEN serves as a resource to all clinicians, researchers, and investigators working in pediatric nephrology.

Within the PCEN are four cores available for clinicians and researchers: the Clinical Phenotyping Core, the Learning Health System Core, the Enrichment Core, and the Pilot and Feasibility Core:

• The Clinical Phenotyping Core provides direct services to investigators that help identify cardiovascular disease risk factors, nutrition/bone health, and other developmental growth factors in patients with kidney disease.
• The Learning Health System Core is a data and research resource for investigators that builds off of the PEDSnet infrastructure to develop a national interconnected, multi-institutional infrastructure able to reach adequate numbers of affected children and provide the depth of information necessary to adequately characterize their kidney disease.
• The Enrichment Core provides outreach and professional development for students, clinicians, and early investigators in the field of nephrology through summer programs, a seminar series, and other activities.
• The Pilot and Feasibility Core funds at least two pilot grants per year that will enhance research in clinical trials in pediatric nephrology and take advantage of the PCEN’s core resources.

As the PCEN strives toward the goal of reducing barriers to clinical trial implementation in children with kidney disease, it will achieve its goal to grow into a widely available and valuable resource for all clinicians and investigators working in the field of pediatric nephrology, while also increasing awareness in nephrology research, the impact of the research, and the robustness of its clinical trials.