Chronic Kidney Disease is a Quality Priority
Chronic kidney disease is common, costly, and often called the silent killer. But chronic kidney disease has not gotten much attention in the quality world—until now. We discuss moving chronic kidney disease from the sidelines to the front lines of quality improvement.
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About The Guest
Benjamin Oldfield, MD, MHS, is a primary care physician trained and boarded in internal medicine, pediatrics, and addiction medicine. He is Chief Medical Officer of Unity Health Care, the largest network of community health centers in Washington, DC. He is also core faculty at Yale’s National Clinician Scholars Program. His research and program-building has focused on care delivery in community health centers and the care for individuals with unhealthy substance use.
Dr. Oldfield received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and completed residency in the combined internal medicine and pediatrics urban health track at Johns Hopkins. Following residency, he received additional training in research methods and health policy at Yale’s National Clinician Scholar Program.
Episode Description
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) affects millions, yet remains largely hidden. On this episode of Quality Matters, Dr. Ben Oldfield, Chief Medical Officer at Unity Health Care, joins host Andy Reynolds to unpack why this “silent killer” is so hard to detect, discuss and emphasize.
Ben reveals the challenges of diagnosing CKD in community health centers and CKD’s emotional impact on patients. We also examine the shift towards a holistic “CKM” approach, linking CKD to cardiovascular and metabolic health. NCQA’s Dr. Caroline Blaum explains how quality measurement is elevating kidney health alongside better-known risk factors like diabetes and hypertension.
The conversation ends with Ben’s thoughtful observations on how classic literature, particularly epic poetry, helps doctors make sense of health care’s emotional complexities, connect with patients and find empowerment in the face of life and death.
What’s the follow up like? How are we doing with the patient over time? Because oftentimes quality measures can look at things in a snapshot in time.
Chronic kidney disease really begs us to think more longitudinally.
Timestamps
(02:54) The Silent Nature of CKD
(07:05) Quality Measurement and CKD
(11:08) The Link Between CKD and Cardiovascular Kidney Metabolic syndrome
(13:06) CKD and CKM as Quality Priorities
(15:45) Narrative Medicine and Personal Insights