Anatoliy’s story

I completed a clinical short-term fellowship in the field of interventional nephrology at Hospital Curry Cabral - Lisbon, Portugal. It was the most valuable clinical experience I have had since starting my work as a nephrologist. I definitely recommend this programme to all young nephrologists who are interested in interventional nephrology.

I believe it is valuable not only as an addition to one's CV, but also for gaining a broader understanding of the concept of mentorship. In Portugal, it is part of the residency programme to complete a fellowship abroad in order to acquire new skills that can later be implemented in the home institution as a natural form of experience exchange.

After returning to my home institution, I began performing tunnelled haemodialysis catheter placements. Also, we started pre-surgical ultrasound mapping of vessels, routine follow-up of vascular access after its creation, that we did not perform before.

I successfully achieved two main objectives: ultrasound evaluation of vascular access with pre-surgical mapping, and follow-up after vascular access creation. I also began placing tunnelled haemodialysis catheters independently, using both anterograde and retrograde approaches. With the experience I have gained, I plan to introduce retrograde catheter placement at my home centre.
I completed my internship over a period of two months. Ideally, I believe the duration should be three months, but unfortunately, I was unable to stay longer.
In addition, I had the opportunity to perform kidney biopsies, which I had not done before.
I am especially grateful to Tiago Assis Pereira, Cristina Jorge, Fernando Caeiro, Vasco Fernandes, and Nuno Moreira Fonseca for their warm welcome, mentorship, and unwavering support during my time in Lisbon.