Nephrologist
What the work is
Investigates, diagnoses and treats disorders of the human kidney and urinary tract.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Assesses, diagnoses and manages patients presenting with suspected disorders of the kidney and urinary tract
- Requests and interprets laboratory tests, imaging, kidney function tests and other diagnostic procedures
- Prescribes medication and administers treatment based on kidney function
- Liaises and consults with a multidisciplinary team for optimised renal treatment
- Organises dialysis and monitors patients' conditions by assessing water weight and filtration rate
- Provides ongoing support in treating acute and chronic renal diseases
- Performs procedures associated with the diagnosis and treatment of kidney disease, including renal biopsy and those associated with achieving or maintaining access for renal dialysis
- Oversees the administration of renal replacement therapies, which include both haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis treatments for kidney health, as well as the coordination of kidney transplants
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a hospital ward and outpatient clinic where specialist physicians see older adults. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A puzzling set of symptoms suddenly makes sense and the right treatment starts
- An older patient goes home to the place they love, with the right support
- A junior doctor you teach asks a question you had not thought of
Hard days
- Families who disagree with each other, and with the patient, about what should happen next
- Pressure to free up a bed when the person in it is not yet ready to leave
- Conversations about what matters most that nobody is eager to have
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 264341, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.