American Kidney Fund Accredits and Redesigns Kidney Health Coach Program for Professional Audiences

ROCKVILLE, Md. (January 13, 2022) The American Kidney Fund (AKF) today announces its revamped and redesigned Kidney Health Coach community education program. Originally launched in 2018 for a lay audience, the free program has been overhauled to meet criteria for health professionals seeking to obtain continuing education credit.

The revamped Kidney Health Coach program is available in both English and Spanish and contains four course modules. Health care professionals who are eligible for continuing education credit at no cost include:

• Certified health education specialists/master certified health education specialists
• Social workers
• Nurses
• Registered dietitian nutritionists
• Certified diabetes care and education specialists

Interested participants may visit KidneyFund.org/khc to learn more about the program and sign up. Upon course completion, Kidney Health Coaches will receive access to educational resources, such as flyers, PowerPoint templates, e-newsletters, a guide to organizing their own training sessions, and a welcome kit. They will also be granted access to AKF's private Facebook group for Kidney Health Coaches, where they can meet and communicate with other Coaches and AKF staff.

"Kidney Health Coach extends the reach of our vital kidney health education materials by empowering individuals to educate their own communities," said LaVarne A. Burton, AKF President and CEO. "We are very excited to now offer an accredited continuing education program for kidney professionals, as medical professionals already make up the majority of our Kidney Health Coaches. We are proud to introduce this newly redesigned program to meet professionals' needs and allow them to provide the most comprehensive kidney education to those who rely on them for care."

The changes to the Kidney Health Coach program were informed by data confirming that 65% of those who have completed the program since 2018 are health professionals, including certified health education specialists and master certified health education specialists, diabetes educators, renal dietitians, nurses and social workers. Since 2018, more than 2,500 individuals have completed the Kidney Health Coach program, hosting more than 320 education sessions and reaching more than 8,400 people in their communities.