Suetonia Palmer has contributed to the international evidence base underpinning treatment of kidney diseases and diabetes and their direct impact on patients. Her work has drawn evidence from thousands of studies and trials to describe the evidentiary basis for common conditions including diabetes, hypertension and kidney disease. Her highly respected large-scale meta-analysis, including some of the largest recorded in the medical literature, have identified a lack of evidence to underpin diabetes and kidney disease treatment worldwide and to show when evidence of benefit is present. These findings have been incorporated into the World Health Organization guidelines and the global kidney guidelines (KDIGO). Her collaboration with leading academics in Indigenous health has resulted in the generation of a research checklist to strengthen research conduct including Indigenous participants and measuring the impact of colonisation on health outcomes for Indigenous peoples through research and education. This has enabled increased focus on equity and social accountability in New Zealand health research and clinical trials. Her scholarship has transformed the evidentiary basis of kidney disease care over a 15-year period leading to recommendations for and against specific therapies.
