The Department of Nephrology at The Second Norman Bethune Hospital of Jilin University was established in 1982 and has since developed into a comprehensive division integrating clinical practice, teaching, scientific research, and physician training. As early as 1979, the department began enrolling master's students in nephrology, cultivating a large number of outstanding professionals. Notably, Academician Chen Xiangmei, a renowned nephrology expert, was among the first cohort of master's graduates. Currently, the department is a national key clinical specialty construction project. It serves as the chair unit of the Jilin Provincial Medical Association Nephrology Branch and the Jilin Provincial Physician Association Nephrology Branch. It is also the Jilin Provincial Health Department Nephrology Medical Quality Control Center, one of the first Ministry of Health Peritoneal Dialysis Demonstration and Training Centers, the Jilin Provincial Blood Purification Training Center, the Jilin Provincial Blood Purification Specialist Nurse Training Base, the Jilin Provincial Health Department Nephrology Key Research Laboratory, the Jilin Provincial Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine Nephrology Laboratory for TCM Scientific Research, the Jilin Provincial Health Department Key Laboratory for Diabetes Complications, and a national clinical drug trial base.
The department boasts a disciplinary echelon with high academic qualifications, excellent quality, and sustainable development potential. Led by Professor Miao Lining as the academic leader, supported by several key academic骨干, it features a technologically advanced, well-structured medical team with high qualifications and sustainable potential. The nephrology experts enjoy significant influence within domestic, provincial, and academic circles. The team currently comprises 24 doctors, 82 nurses, and 6 technicians. Among the doctors, there are 5 professors, 7 associate professors, 4 doctoral supervisors, 7 master's supervisors, 10 holding doctoral degrees, and 12 holding master's degrees. The医护 staffing ratio is appropriate, the talent梯队 structure is rational, ensuring sustainable development capable of meeting current and future departmental needs. The current medical structure primarily consists of two groups: the Ziqiang Campus medical team led by Professor Luo Ping and Professor Zhang Dongmei, and the Youth Campus medical team led by Professor Lu Xuehong. Each medical team is supported by corresponding associate professors, attending physicians, treating physicians, residents, postgraduate students, and trainees, ensuring the integrity of the three-tier physician ward round system. Each medical group maintains a leading domestic level in the diagnosis and treatment of glomerular diseases, chronic kidney diseases, and autoimmune systemic diseases.
The department comprises seven sections: outpatient clinic, inpatient wards, blood purification center, peritoneal dialysis center, renal intensive care unit (ICU), renal biopsy pathology diagnosis center, and nephrology research laboratory. It currently has 135 open beds, making it the largest renal disease diagnosis and treatment center in Jilin Province. The clinical treatment center has 135 beds, and the blood purification center has 129 beds. The blood purification center performs nearly 60,895 dialysis sessions annually and completes 624 cases of continuous blood purification each year. The cumulative number of renal穿刺 biopsies and pathology diagnoses has exceeded 4,000 cases. Adhering to the principle of comprehensive development in medical treatment, teaching, and research, the department has achieved fruitful results in scientific research in recent years. Over the past decade, the department has undertaken 69 research projects, including 5 National Natural Science Foundation projects, 3 National 973 Program projects, 2 National 863 Program projects, and 4 National 12th Five-Year Plan projects. The department has won 1 Second Prize for Provincial Science and Technology Progress, 1 Third Prize for Provincial Science and Technology Progress, 3 Provincial Science and Technology Achievement Awards, 1 Provincial Natural Science Academic Achievement Award, 1 Second Prize for Jilin University Medical Achievement, 8 Third Prizes for Jilin University Medical Achievement, and 2 national patents. It has published over 200 papers, including 79 in core journals, 34 presented at academic conferences, and 36 indexed by SCI. To date, the department has supervised and trained 3 postdoctoral fellows, 14 doctoral students, and over 100 master's students.
The hemodialysis center was established in 1982. It currently has 3 dialysis rooms with a total of 117 dialysis machines. The annual total number of dialysis sessions is approximately 55,000, with an average of over 4,300 sessions per month. There are currently about 470 regular hemodialysis patients. The center was the first in Jilin Province to introduce various new blood purification technologies such as hemofiltration, hemodiafiltration, adjustable sodium dialysis, high-flux dialysis, and plasma exchange. These technologies have been widely applied among dialysis patients and have received consistent recognition from patients and their families.
Peritoneal dialysis work began in 1983, and in 2010, the department became one of the first Ministry of Health Peritoneal Dialysis Demonstration and Training Centers. Over the years, peritoneal dialysis work has thrived. In 2009, the department independently developed China's first "automated peritoneal dialysis machine." This research achievement received a "national patent" and was included in the National Ministry of Science and Technology's 12th Five-Year Plan major projects. Leveraging the advantage of its self-developed domestic automated peritoneal dialysis machine, the department vigorously promotes automated peritoneal dialysis. This allows for adequate dialysis in patients with residual renal function while improving their quality of life, making it a characteristic diagnostic and treatment item of the department's peritoneal dialysis therapy.
The intensive care unit (ICU) is one of the department's specialties. It is equipped with 4 CRRT machines, the most advanced monitoring systems, and various medical devices, enabling continuous renal replacement therapy. Over the years, it has successfully treated a large number of critically ill patients with acute renal failure and multiple organ failure. The diverse and stable modes of CRRT have solved many problems encountered in hemodialysis, such as cardiovascular instability, elderly patients, and dialysis hypotension, achieving satisfactory treatment results.
The department was the first in Jilin Province to perform renal biopsy technology. It is the only nephrology department in the province that integrates renal biopsy room, renal pathology laboratory, and renal pathology diagnosis. It possesses advanced全套 renal pathology diagnostic equipment. With technically solid and stable renal pathology technicians, it provides technical assurance for the accuracy of independent pathological diagnosis reports. Many difficult and complicated cases have been definitively diagnosed through renal biopsy pathological examination, providing a basis for further guiding treatment. Each month, the department also accepts a large number of renal biopsy pathology consultations from various regions across the province, helping other brother hospitals resolve many medical难题, truly playing a leading role in nephrology within Jilin Province.
In terms of laboratory construction, the department adheres to a development direction that combines clinical and basic research. The department's nephrology research laboratory is recognized as the Jilin Provincial Health Department Key Laboratory for Nephrology and the Jilin Provincial Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine Key Laboratory for Nephrology. For many years, it has remained open to the outside world, providing technical support to multiple departments and numerous researchers. The laboratory covers an area of 400 square meters and includes four units: cell biology, molecular biology, pathology, and clinical testing. It can perform various experimental projects such as Western blot, PCR, electrophoresis, cell culture, animal experiments, transgenics, and immunohistochemistry. In 2013, it introduced several high-end diagnostic and research equipment, including a transmission electron microscope and a multi-viewer microscope. It is the first nephrology specialty in Northeast China to possess a transmission electron microscope for renal disease diagnosis. While used for disease diagnosis, it also undertakes a significant amount of the department's scientific research and teaching tasks, providing solid technical support for clinical and research studies. The combination of transmission electron microscopy and optical microscopy has greatly enhanced the department's diagnostic level for renal diseases, currently reaching a leading provincial level.
The department始终重视并认真给予贯彻落实 (continuously emphasizes and diligently implements) utilizing its good cooperative relationships with the Chinese PLA General Hospital, the University of Louisville (USA), the Beckman Research Institute (USA), the Nephrology Research Institute of Yonsei University (South Korea), the Centre for Transplant and Renal Research at Westmead Hospital, University of Sydney (Australia), and other institutions. It有计划地安排 (plans and arranges) for mid-career and young physicians to undertake advanced training in diagnosis and treatment techniques. To date, 9 mid-career and young physicians have been sent for exchange and study at the above institutions for joint domestic and international training. Four have returned after completing their studies, and five are still abroad for joint training. These physicians sent for training publish numerous scientific research papers and high-impact factor SCI articles annually and participate in multiple domestic and international research projects, playing important roles in their development. The department has also sent over twenty medical staff for training at various domestic nephrology medical centers. Simultaneously, it invites renowned domestic and international experts and scholars to give lectures, actively hosts international and domestic conferences and workshops, conducts academic exchanges and training for hospitals at all levels within the province, expands the discipline's influence, and conducts large-scale promotions and普及 of nephrology knowledge on World Kidney Day each year to enhance social service capabilities. To date, the department has supervised and trained 3 postdoctoral fellows, 14 doctoral students, and over 100 master's students.
The overall goal of the department's construction is to establish a comprehensive key nephrology specialty with international vision, innovative awareness, regional radiation effect, and informatization, integrating prevention, diagnosis, treatment, scientific research, and training. It aims to become a nationally and internationally renowned nephrology diagnosis and treatment center, teaching and training center, information exchange center, scientific research攻坚 center, and health education center.
