The concept of shared ownership in the provision of vascular access for kidney disease patients requiring dialysis will be a key theme running through the programme of the 2026 Annual Scientific Meeting of the Vascular Access Society of Britain & Ireland (VASBI; 24–25 September, Liverpool, UK). The meeting brings together vascular access specialists of various disciplines from across the UK, Ireland, and further afield, to update on the latest developments in the field and how these translate into daily practice.
The society’s current president, transplant and vascular surgeon Jeremy Crane (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK), whose term ends this year, spoke to Renal Interventions ahead of the upcoming meeting. Crane stressed the importance of the open nature of the meeting in fostering productive relationships between the different specialisms in the vascular access arena; among them haemodialysis and vascular nurses, interventional radiologists, nephrologists, vascular scientists and transplant and vascular access surgeons. The VASBI meeting also features strong participation from patient delegates to ensure that those receiving care are adequately represented.
“To practise true and proper vascular access for dialysis, all the brilliant outcomes are predicated on the multidisciplinary team approach,” comments Crane, who says that, since a renewal of the organisation’s focus and priorities in 2022, VASBI has put a huge stock in the strength of bringing together a diverse set of voices to increase engagement across the kidney care field.
Crane believes that this multidisciplinary approach represents a significant shift in how vascular access is viewed and delivered. Historically, he says, the field could sometimes appear dominated by individual specialties or established voices, limiting the opportunity for the wider community to contribute.
Since the society’s restructuring, Crane says there has been a deliberate effort to broaden participation and ensure that vascular access professionals from all backgrounds have the opportunity to contribute. “I don’t think you could say there is one overriding voice. It’s not predominantly surgical, it’s not predominantly nephrological, it’s not predominantly interventional radiology,” he says. “It’s across the board.”
For Crane, this diversity is not simply about representation; it is fundamental to improving outcomes for patients. The complexity of dialysis access means that no single intervention or specialty can operate in isolation. From creation and maintenance of vascular access through to cannulation and ongoing management, each stage relies on expertise from multiple members of the care team.
This principle of shared responsibility will form a central theme throughout the 2026 meeting, with sessions exploring how the vascular access community can improve outcomes and address areas where performance remains suboptimal.
“One aspect is about whether our outcomes are good and what we can do to improve them; particularly on the surgical side, where outcomes still aren’t great,” says Crane. “That is about technical failure and where the responsibility lies for failure.”
The meeting’s opening session brings together these talking points, looking in depth at technical failure in arteriovenous fistula (AVF) creation, where responsibility lies in improving vascular access outcomes, and some of the emerging tools, technologies and strategies to optimise surgical AVF outcomes. Sessions on day two look at the optimal timing of fistula creation in dialysis patients, who is responsible for fistula surveillance, as well as a deep dive into needling technique, training and competence.
“Needling is a very under-recognised area within vascular access; as surgeons and interventional radiologists, we can create and maintain fistulas in the most technically advanced way, but the reality is, if they’re not being needled properly, then it’s a waste of time,” Crane comments. “It’s an area of real skill, and there’s a lot of it out there that’s undervalued and under-recognised.”
The programme features scientific abstract presentation, submissions for which have increased from previous years, Crane says. Additionally, the VASBI gold medal will be awarded to Nicholas Inston (University Hospitals Birmingham, Birmingham, UK), who Crane says has been a “tremendous asset” to the vascular access community.
