Johns Hopkins O'Brien Center to Advance Kidney Health Equity - OVERALL
ABSTRACT
Disparities in kidney health are profound; and for decades, have been documented for socially marginalized
populations, yet little progress has been made to mitigate them. The overarching goal of the Johns Hopkins
O’Brien Center to Advance Kidney Health Equity (JHOC) is to harness the collective expertise of basic, clinical
and translational researchers at Johns Hopkins to serve as a national resource for investigators addressing the
fundamental question of: what are the underlying mechanisms responsible for profound disparities in kidney
health and how can they be mitigated? We will leverage the strengths and existing infrastructure of the Johns
Hopkins Division of Nephrology, the Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research and the
Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity. JHOC will include; 3 integrated cores (Administrative, Biomedical
Resource and Resource Development); an Executive Committee; an Internal Advisory Committee, and a
Community Advisory Board. Together, we will (1) provide an innovative portfolio of research services,
resources, and tools for investigators to understand and ameliorate disparities in kidney disease; (2) develop
new and refine existing resources as part of a dynamic incubator space for the conduct of basic and clinical
research relevant to advancing kidney health equity; (3) transfer mature resources to the Biomedical Resource
Core to be shared with the community; (4) plan and execute an annual Summer Student Enrichment Program
which leverages a long-standing partnership with a Johns Hopkins program for students from
socioeconomically under-resourced backgrounds; (5) foster the careers of early-stage investigators by
promoting trans-disciplinary and cross-sector collaboration that will attract investigators from fields not
traditionally involved in kidney health equity research; and (6) collaborate with the National Coordinating
Center to prioritize external requests for resources and enhance national outreach. JHOC will support
investigators conducting pre-clinical (basic), clinical or population health research addressing kidney health
disparities, and will make recommendations to inform strategies, interventions, and approaches aimed at
achieving kidney health equity.
