Ebele Umeukeje, MD, MPH, FASN

Dr. Ebele Mary-Anne Umeukeje is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). She received the 2024 award for outstanding contribution to diversity and inclusion in the Department of Medicine at VUMC. She serves as the co-Director of the VUMC Program for Population Health and Engagement Research; Diversity Liaison for the VUMC Nephrology Division; and a member of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee of the American Society of Nephrology (ASN). She also serves on the editorial board of the ASN journals, American Journal of Kidney Diseases (AJKD), and Kidney 360 journals.

Dr. Umeukeje played a key role in providing the first systematic-level evidence in support of the removal of race from the estimation of glomerular filtration rate in the United States. She has successfully built her patient-centered research program with combined expertise in motivational interviewing, provider cultural competence, community engagement, health education, and behavioral clinical trials, with a primary goal of promoting kidney health equity.

Through continuous funding by the NIH/NIDDK including a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards (NRSA) individual post-doctoral fellowship (F32) award, NIDDK K23 career development award, NIDDK R03 award, and an R01 award from NIDDK, she has developed, and is currently testing the efficacy of novel, culturally tailored motivational interviewing strategies to improve dialysis treatment adherence in African Americans with end stage kidney disease, to promote kidney health equity. Dr. Umeukeje has recognized expertise and experience in community engagement to understand the needs and priorities for best kidney health such as the barriers and facilitators to uptake of free kidney screening services by the African American community; perspectives of the African American community regarding screening for APOL1 high risk genetic variants associated with risk of kidney disease; and perspectives of African Americans on determinant of hemodialysis adherence.