Patients as Research Partners
We request patients' opinions and encourage their valuable feedback as advisors and study participants.
By directly involving patients as research partners, we aim to enhance outcomes for many individuals. Patient engagement comes from a diverse population of patients to meet the needs of all people living with kidney disease.
Bill Peckham, 1963 - 2019
Kidney Research Institute advocate and patient advisor, Northwest Kidney Centers’ emeritus board of trustees chair, and possibly the nation’s most famous dialysis patient.
Bill Peckham began dialysis treatment when his kidneys failed due to chronic kidney disease in 1990. The many stories about Bill’s 
strength on dialysis, his leadership in advocating for better care, and his dedication to kidney research have inspired people around the globe. He was an active advocate for kidney patients in Washington, DC, and never shied away from telling his personal story and sharing his expertise about kidney policy from the patient’s point of view.
Bill was a nationally recognized dialysis advocate, blogger, dedicated volunteer leader with Northwest Kidney Centers (NKC), and a key force in establishing the Kidney Research Institute. He led the effort to raise funds from the research task force to prompt the Northwest Kidney Centers board of trustees to commit to founding the Kidney Research Institute. Today, the KRI is a stupendous research powerhouse thanks to Bill's efforts. He was passionate about the need for kidney research to make life better for the future.
Bill volunteered as a trustee of NKC for 12 years, serving as board chair from 2007 to 2009, and setting the example for other dialysis patients on how to live life to the fullest. He received the Clyde Shields Distinguished Service Award in 2005, the Northwest Kidney Centers’ highest honor.
Bill dialyzed at home in West Seattle and remote parts of five continents during his many travels, which were his passion. He traveled to 34 countries, including a raft trip through the Grand Canyon with his dialysis machine alongside. He shared these experiences along with medical and industry insights through his blog, “Dialysis from the sharp end of the needle.”
To commemorate Bill Peckham’s 25th dialysis anniversary, donors made generous gifts to benefit kidney research and named a conference
room in Peckham’s honor at Northwest Kidney Centers’ Seattle dialysis clinic. Northwest Kidney Centers’ one-of-a-kind dialysis museum received Bill's well-traveled dialysis machine as a donation.
“Bill is one of the most incredible people I know,” said Dr. Doug Johnson, vice chair of DCI, who was on a Grand Canyon raft trip with Bill. “He also happens to need dialysis treatments. Bill inspires me to be a better person and a better leader. He reminds me that life should not be a float trip. In life as in the river rapids, we need to create our own momentum, face our challenges, and work together.”
“Sustaining life by using dialysis is not easy,” said Peckham. “But with the support of Northwest Kidney Centers, I have lived a life much like the one I was meant to live but for kidney disease: a life of work, travel, and volunteering.”
Listen to Bill talk about his life in this short video:
Patient Advisory Committee (PAC)
The Patient Advisory Committee consists of local and national community members who represent a variety of backgrounds, experiences with kidney disease, interests, ethnicities, genders, and ages. As advocates for kidney research and patient care, the PAC provides productive feedback to investigators and other nephrology professionals to continuously improve communication between patients and doctors.
Each year, the KRI hosts an all-day meeting, inviting doctors, researchers, and other medical professionals within the UW Medicine community to report and discuss their findings, progress, and goals for kidney research. The objective of the annual Patient Advisory Committee meeting is to enable our patient advisors to share their perspectives and experiences with the KRI staff to help improve the functionality of innovations currently developed by faculty within the Division of Nephrology and to enhance the overall patient experience.
Meet our Patient Advisory Committee Members
Register for a research study
Clinical Practice Guidelines
Our patients assist us by writing Clinical Practice Guidelines that apply the results of rigorous scientific research through the lens of the patient experience.
KDIGO is a global nonprofit organization developing and implementing evidence-based clinical practice guidelines in kidney disease.
KDIGO Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes
Tami Sadusky
Tami received a kidney and pancreas transplant in May 1993 and a second kidney transplant in May 2011. She received her BS and MBA degrees before moving to Washington. Tami worked with the University of Washington for 22 years in grant accounting and finance and is now an active volunteer in organ donation and transplantation. She is a board member of Transplant House, a member of the UWMC Transplant Advisory Council, a member of the UWMC Team Transplant Strategic Planning and Finance Committee, a member of the Kidney Research Institute Advisory Council, and she works closely with the National Kidney Foundation and Northwest Kidney Centers.
Becca S. Cheung
Becca has been a fundraising professional in the realm of human rights and higher education for the past ten years in Seattle, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., and Sydney, Australia. At the age of 26, she was diagnosed with stage 5 renal failure with a 7 glomerular filtration rate (GFR). With deep roots in the Pacific Northwest, Becca works with the Office of Advancement at the Seattle Colleges Foundation — as a colleague to her kidney donor! Since her transplant in 2016, Becca has served on the former Young Professionals Advisory Forum of the Northwest Kidney Centers (NKC) and Co-Chair of the NKC Gala Committee as her way to give back to the community that saved her. Becca is an Advisory Council member at World Relief Seattle, a global refugee resettlement agency, and brings an equity lens to her volunteer work.
