National Kidney Foundation Expands THE BIG ASK: THE BIG GIVE to 15 More Key U.S. Markets

NEW YORK, June 18, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- In a life-saving leap for THE BIG ASK: THE BIG GIVE (BABG) platform, designed to increase kidney transplantation and living donation, the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) has expanded its BABG trainings to 15 additional markets across the country, thanks to a new partnership with the Fresenius Medical Care Foundation (FMCF).

The FMCF is providing substantial support to NKF to expand BABG outreach and in-person trainings, while promoting the program in Fresenius Kidney Care dialysis centers around the country. Since 2017, BABG has provided free nationwide training and tools that help kidney patients and families find a living donor. In-person trainings teach kidney patients, and their family and friends, how to share their story and make a "big ask" to their friends, loved ones, or community to consider making a "big give," a living kidney donation.

Patients, their families, and prospective donors are the collective focus of BABG.  In a recent PSA series developed by NKF, kidney transplant patient Alan says: "My wife Aisha and I followed the advice, reached out to our social networks to find a donor, and I had a successful kidney transplant.  I am so thankful to my donor and to NKF for helping me find my way to her." See the video.

The new partnership with FMCF will substantially increase existing efforts by NKF to get BABG in front of as many qualified patients and their families as possible.  It also will help advance NKF's goal to ultimately eliminate the kidney transplant waitlist.

"The Fresenius Medical Care Foundation's generosity, and helping us to expand THE BIG ASK: THE BIG GIVE programs by sharing the information at their dialysis locations, shows a shared and deep commitment to improving and saving the lives of kidney patients," said Kevin Longino, NKF CEO and a kidney transplant patient for nearly 15 years. "THE BIG ASK: THE BIG GIVE at NKF has been a game changer. We encourage patients who are scared, overwhelmed, and frankly, too humble to ask someone to give them a kidney, to let us show them how."

The FMCF strives to help people understand the life-saving power of kidney transplantation by focusing on educating patients, reaching prospective donors, and mobilizing the medical community. The FMCF is committed to empowering people living with kidney disease to advocate on behalf of their own health.

"We support the National Kidney Foundation's THE BIG ASK: THE BIG GIVE program because we want all people living with chronic kidney disease to have the opportunity to live a full and meaningful life," said Bill Valle, CEO of Fresenius Medical Care North America and President of the FMCF. "Our goal is to ensure that everyone impacted by kidney disease has access to the right treatment at the right time – including transplant, home dialysis, and in-center dialysis – giving them their lives back."

The FMCF is supporting and promoting NKF's BABG platform in the following markets with in-person workshops to be held throughout 2019: Charleston, SC; Charleston, WV; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Denver, CO; El Paso, TX; Los Angeles, CA; Louisville, KY; Minneapolis, MN; Columbia, MO; Orange County, CA; Philadelphia, PA; Phoenix, AZ; Washington, DC; and Worcester, MA. For information about events as they are scheduled, visit www.kidney.org/events

About the Fresenius Medical Care Foundation
The Fresenius Medical Care Foundation's mission is to raise awareness of kidney disease and transplantation as a lifesaving solution.  Through partnerships and financial support of innovative programs and solutions; the Foundation aims to change the trajectory of kidney disease for patients and communities. The Foundation was established in 2018 by Fresenius Medical Care North America, the premier healthcare company focused on providing the highest quality integrated care to people with renal and other chronic conditions.

About Kidney Disease
In the United States 30 million adults are estimated to have chronic kidney disease—and most aren't aware of it.  1 in 3 American adults are at risk for chronic kidney disease.  Risk factors for kidney disease include diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity and family history.  People of African American, Hispanic, Native American, Asian or Pacific Islander descent are at increased risk for developing the disease.  African Americans are 3 times more likely than Whites, and Hispanics are nearly 1.5 times more likely than non-Hispanics to develop end stage renal disease (kidney failure).

More than 726,000 Americans have irreversible kidney failure, or end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and need dialysis or a kidney transplant to survive. And 500,000 ESRD patients receive dialysis at least three times per week to replace kidney function.  Nearly 100,000 Americans are on the waitlist for a kidney transplant right now.  Depending on where a patient lives, the average wait time for a kidney transplant can be upwards of three to seven years.  Living organ donation not only saves lives, it saves money.

About National Kidney Foundation Living Organ Donation Resources
THE BIG ASK: THE BIG GIVE platform includes in-person trainings, direct patient and caregiver support through our toll-free help line 855-NKF-CARES, peer mentoring from a fellow kidney patient or a living donor, online communities, an advocacy campaign to remove barriers to donation, and a multi-media public awareness campaign.

The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is the largest, most comprehensive and longstanding organization dedicated to the awareness, prevention and treatment of kidney disease. For more information about NKF visit www.kidney.org.

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SOURCE National Kidney Foundation

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