Renata, My Nephrologist: A Project for Preventing Kidney Disease from Childhood

Renata, My Nephrologist is a project by the Fundación Renal Española aimed at promoting kidney health starting in childhood. It features an illustrated book designed for children aged 8 to 12. The Foundation distributes the book free of charge to schools, libraries, and other educational centers interested in hosting workshops. These workshops help students better understand kidney disease, learn how to prevent it, and share their newfound knowledge with friends and family. The goal is to use young ambassadors to raise awareness among the general population about this disease, which already affects 15% of people in some regions and is ranked by the WHO as one of the top ten causes of mortality worldwide.

What is «Renata, My Nephrologist»?

Renata, My Nephrologist is an illustrated book for primary school children. It is designed to be used as classroom teaching material and included in recommended reading lists. Its purpose is to shine a light on kidney disease, explain different types of renal replacement therapy, and raise awareness from an early age regarding prevention strategies and organ donation.

The project is planned as a trilogy. In this first introductory book, the two female protagonists are Martina, a primary school student, and Renata, the nephrologist treating Martina’s ill father. Through Martina’s questions, Renata explains what kidneys are, their functions in the body, what happens when kidneys stop working, and the various treatment options in a concise manner. As Martina’s dad begins hemodialysis, she asks about the causes of kidney failure and how to prevent it, leading to a discussion on various preventive measures. The second and third books will cover other renal replacement therapies, such as home dialysis and transplantation.

The 24-page book was written by Dr. Mª Dolores Arenas, a nephrologist and Care Director at the Fundación Renal Española, with illustrations by Xavier Altimiras. The project also benefited from «child advisors»—kidney patients from the Hospital Universitario Gregorio Marañón and members of ALCER—who participated in workshops to review the book and provide feedback. Over twenty children living with kidney disease supervised the initial drafts and illustrations, offering suggestions that were incorporated into the final version. Furthermore, these young advisors proposed a new book directed at parents and relatives of children with kidney disease to help them understand and cope with their child’s condition.

Do you want to collaborate and help promote kidney health from childhood?

Here is how you can help.

Bring Renata to your school!

The Renata Project is designed to be implemented in the classroom as a simple educational activity adaptable to the students’ age. The Fundación Renal Española provides all necessary materials for free so you can organize a workshop at your center:

📖 Copies of the book Renata, My Nephrologist to read the adventures of Martina and Renata together.
🎨 Teaching unit and activity workbook, featuring age-appropriate proposals.
💬 Informed consent forms for families wishing to participate in the research study.

The goal of the workshop is for children to learn about kidney health, healthy habits, and disease prevention, and then share that knowledge at home. We want them to become true «Kidney Health Ambassadors» within their families.

An educational project… and a research study

Renata is more than just an educational proposal; it is also part of a research study aimed at measuring the workshop’s impact on the knowledge of students and their families, analyzing how information is transmitted from the classroom to the home.

The project is backed by professionals and researchers from SEN, SEDEN, and ALCER. To ensure scientific validity, it is important to complete the PRE and POST questionnaires, which are brief and age-adapted. These allow us to:

Determine the baseline knowledge before the intervention (PRE).
Evaluate what was learned after the workshop (POST).
Analyze the transfer of knowledge from children to their families.

Your collaboration ensures the scientific rigor of this study, contributing to better kidney disease prevention for thousands of people in the future.

Step-by-Step Participation

Contact us: Send an email from your center’s official account to proyectorenata@fundacionrenal.es expressing your interest.
Request materials: We will send you the project protocol and materials. Once reviewed and participation is confirmed, you must return the completed «Researcher Form» to manage the shipment of books.
Informed Consent: Before data collection, distribute and collect the signed consent forms from families.
PRE Questionnaires (Before reading the book):
- PRE Questionnaire for children.
- PRE Questionnaire for families.
  - Important: Do not modify any questions or complete the PRE questionnaire after reading.
Enjoy the workshop! Read the book in class and carry out the proposed activities.
POST Questionnaires (5–7 days later):
- POST Questionnaire for children.
- POST Questionnaire for families.
Tell us how it went: Send a brief email with the number of participants and the date. If you have photos, we’d love to see them!