Image caption: Henry Craigie and Niamah Walters have been enjoying their work with the Territory Kidney Care (TKC) team. 

Menzies is updating information for people living with kidney disease in northern and central Australia and some of the renal team’s newest members are helping. 

Henry Craigie and Niamah Walters are working on Territory Kidney Care (TKC), which is a clinical information and decision support system for kidney disease and other related chronic conditions. They work closely with Project Manager Dr Sophie Pascoe.

“TKC looks at ways to identify kidney disease early, slow the progression, and provide patients with better management and care during their renal journey,” Dr Pascoe said. 

“Henry and Niamah’s roles are quite dynamic, and a big part of our work is communicating what Territory Kidney Care does in integrating information from primary and tertiary electronic health records, and making sure that patients understand how their data is being used to improve their care.”

Niamah is an Engagement Officer and started with Menzies in 2019 – first as a trainee working closely with the HealthLAB team, before starting with the renal program in July this year. 

“I think this role is a good opportunity, because I can help support my family and help support other people too – who are also going through dialysis – to work closely with them and help them through their journey. I feel like I’m giving something back to them as well,” Niamah said.

Henry is a Project Assistant and has been with Menzies since 2018, first working in child health before joining the renal team in January this year.

“I never knew much about kidneys before, and now I go to the dialysis units at Nightcliff and Palmerston – and it’s just good to go there and learn from the staff and talk to the patients,” Henry said.

Both Niamah and Henry were involved in the production of a new, animated patient information video for TKC. It explains what TKC is and how patients’ data may be shared to improve their care. It’s part of ongoing work to raise awareness of renal health for First Nations peoples. 

“When I talk to the renal patients, they tell me all about it, and they tell me to stay on the right path with my health,” Henry said. 

Niamah’s family is based in Central Australia and her connection to Country helps in the communication of messages important to renal health.

“It’s good having that cultural knowledge, which I can add to the team,” Niamah said.

Project Manager Dr Sophie Pascoe said she’s proud of the work Menzies does supporting First Nations trainees who also support other staff members.

“The renal team is really eager to build the capacity of different staff members,” Dr Pascoe said.

“We really value the skills Henry and Niamah bring to our team, and we’re hoping that they both want to keep working with us and we can support them on whatever paths they choose,” she said. 

The TKC patient information video will be screened in clinic waiting rooms at partnering health services and GP practices and shared on social media. To find out more about the work being done by our chronic kidney disease research teams, head to: https://www.menzies.edu.au/page/Research/Indigenous_Health/Diabetes_and_kidney_disease/Kidney/