Background
Background of Project’s Impetus
Chronic kidney disease is one of the illnesses stressing the healthcare system across the world. The kidney is an important body part because it helps the body excrete waste and unwanted materials in the body (Langner et al., 2020). These organs are the body’s cleanser and when they fail, the body suffers the consequence of having excess and toxic substances. Phosphorus is one of the elements that the kidney balances by removing its excess and ensuring the blood only contains harmless phosphorus levels (Cherney et al., 2021). When the kidneys are not working well the level of phosphorus in the blood elevates and this threatens one’s health. Since the food people eat contains phosphorus, it is impossible to avoid having phosphorus in the body completely. The former implies that with failed kidney, doctors must find ways to evacuate phosphorus from the body to avoid other health conditions like heart failure, high blood pressure weak bones, joint pain, and even death. Hemodialysis has greatly been used as one way of helping patients with chronic kidney disease clean their blood.
Patient Population
Globally, many people have been diagnosed with kidney issues and have spent a fortune seeking and acquiring treatment. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) (2021), in the United States, 37 million adults have chronic kidney disease (CKD). The risk of developing CKD is significantly high among Americans with hypertension and diabetes, the two diseases that are among the common aspects that cause kidney failure (CDC, 2021). Additionally, other elements that can cause kidney disease includes cardiovascular disease and a history of renal failure. Data indicated that the rates of CKD are slightly higher and more common in women (14%) as compared to men (12%). Further, CKD is more common in non-Hispanic Black adults (16%) than non-Hispanic white adults (13%) or non-Hispanic Asian adults (13%);” (CDC, 2021). Research also indicates that persons with lower incomes and poor educational backgrounds are more likely to have kidney issues.
At the same time, people from poorer areas of the United States have a higher chance of getting the disease. The former means that individuals with healthy lifestyles and comfortable living conditions are less susceptible to this disease (CDC, 2021). Although chronic renal failure is incurable, early detection and diagnosis, diet correction, regular monitoring, and proper treatment delay the development of the disease (CDC, 2021). Evidence from research supports the fact that low-income populations are at high risk for dietary phosphate overload due to the elevated levels of phosphate found in inexpensive, processed foods (Erem & Razzaque, 2018; Vervloet & van Ballegooijen, 2018). The latter means that persons with finances can adopt healthy living and have a better chance of successively managing CKD.
Disease Process
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) means that a person’s kidneys are damaged and cannot filter blood the way they should. Risk factors to CKD include; diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and a family history of kidney failure (Tuttle et al., 2019). People can therefore protect their kidneys by simply controlling their blood pressure and adapting healthy lifestyles (Tuttle et al., 2019). Healthcare professionals recommend that if one detects that he/she is exposed to CKD risk factors, he/she should get tested for kidney disease. Moreover, persons at risk can protect their kidneys by eating healthy, exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy weight, and controlling health conditions that cause kidney damage (Carrero et al., 2020). Healthy diet has been incorporated into treating kidney failure ailment with success.
Perhaps the most known method for managing kidney failure internationally is hemodialysis. Dialysis has largely been used as it is viewed as one of the effective and achievable ways to control the illness (Vervloet & van Ballegooijen, 2018). However, the process very expensive and also psychologically draining for patients. In addition to the above-mentioned approaches, the most appropriate way to deal with CKD by kidney transplant. However, getting a kidney is not easy because kidney donors are not readily available (Mazilescu et al., 2022). People fear to donate kidney because of the risks involved in the process. Further, the procedure of acquiring a kidney costly and those financially unstable might to afford to do the transplant.
Problem or Issue Relating to the Disease Process
The past assignments have revealed that CKD is rampant globally and the US is one of the highly affected regions by this disease. Studies have also indicated that except for kidney transplant, which is not easily achievable, there is no cure for kidney failure (Thurlow et al., 2021; Mannon, 2018; Krueger et al., 2020). Management of this disease has therefore greatly been utilized to ensure that those diagnosed still manage to live healthy lives. The past assignments have revealed that there are three main ways used in managing and helping patients with CKD including dialysis, dietary, and emotional support. Patients with kidney disease might feel overwhelmed by the bulky information they get on how to manage their condition. It can also be confusing when they get this information from different people. A training program is, therefore, necessary to teach specialists how they are supposed to cooperate to achieve the best outcome. Additionally, individuals with CKD also need to understand how to handle information from various specialists.
Assessment Results
Literature Synthesis
Literature has shown that hemodialysis among kidney disease patients aims to control the levels of phosphorus in the blood and ensure that the patients still function normally. The background of this study has shown that there are various behavioral ways of achieving the above-mentioned goal. Regular exercises and physical activities are among the ways of keeping the body active, maintaining normal blood pressure, and controlling blood sugar levels (Forfang et al., 2022). Physical exercises can also help maintain a healthy weight and reduce the dangers of diabetes and hypertension and decrease phosphorus levels in the body.
Further, studies show that adopting a healthy lifestyle is also a great way of preventing the advancement of CKD. For instance, individuals who smoke, drink and take other types of illegal drugs are at a high risk of developing CKD. If one is diagnosed with this disease when they are active drug user, it can be highly beneficial if he/she stopped using drugs. The former is because drugs contaminate blood more and would require two active kidneys to cleanse the body (Forfang et al., 2022). Medics working with patients after the CKD diagnosis should purpose to assist the patient to live a healthy lifestyle to improve their quality of life.
Adhering to a strict diet lowers the levels of phosphorus in the body. Patients with CKD should closely work with dieticians to guide them on foods that help improve their conditions (Stanford et al., 2022). However, it might be difficult for CKD patients to follow a new diet as it might mean letting go of foods one loves and adopting undesirable foodstuffs (Carrero et al., 2020). A nutritionist must be among the professionals helping the CKD patients.
Being mentally stable and aware is also a great way of managing kidney failure effectively. In most cases, when a person is diagnosed with the CKD, they are not able to psychologically process the information (Kim et al., 2018). When a patient is not in touch with their emotions, he/she might not be able to adhere to their treatment which results in advancement in their disease resulting in early death (Vervloet & van Ballegooijen, 2018). Psychotherapists are therefore essential in this journey to help the patients accept their conditions and adapt to their new normal.
Current Situation Assessment
Currently, there is evidence suggesting that patients with kidney failure disease have been educated on how to manage and deal with their situations. Studies also show that nurses and doctors are highly trained to deal with patients and provide them with appropriate information (Marker et al., 2019; Chua et al., 2020). However, there is no evidence on educating medics and other professionals to work together to ensure overall patient well-being. Moreover, there is lack of evidence showing that CKD patients understand the importance of balancing the services of the professionals they are required to work with for better health outcomes.
Patient and Care Team Interviews
From the interview, it emerged that communication problems among the involved team members affected disease management procedures. For instance, some clinicians could decide to pursue areas that revolved around their areas of expertise only. For example, a dietician could compel the team to focus mostly on food materials while ignoring the importance of proper medication. These gaps have the potential to affect the patient’s health experiences or outcomes (Nair & Cavanaugh, 2020). To improve communication, additional training mechanisms are essential since they can guide team members to become more involved.
Several differences emerged during the process that could affect the overall well-being of most of the patients. Specifically, some of the specialists focused mainly on their areas of expertise (Ab Hamid et al., 2021). Communication gaps occurred that could disorient the overall effectiveness of the team. These differences help inform better strategies for guiding patients to use educational materials more efficiently and in a beneficial manner.
Gap Analysis
From previous studies conducted in this course, it is evident that communication between various professionals handling patients with kidney failure is crucial to better health outcomes. Interview conducted among the patients and nurses has shown that miscommunication or lack of communication left patients stranded and with unclear information on how well to handle their situations. There is, therefore, a need to train professionals to coordinate with each other for better outcomes for the patient. Instead of having each expert focus on his/her area, all specialists dealing with a certain patient should come together and discuss the welfare of the patient and then act accordingly as a unit.
Risk Assessment
When the professional fails to communicate effectively, the patients remain confused about whose information to follow. The confusion might result in non-adherence to medication, improper diet, and lack of exercise. The former means that when all the concerned specialists do not work together, the patient suffers the consequences which in turn affect their overall well-being. Kidney management programs always purpose to achieve quality health; however, poor communication diminishes this purpose. There is a need for proper communication and collaboration among healthcare experts helping CKD patients.
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Project Budget
Figure: 1 Environmental
Figure:2 Utilities
Figure: 3 Equipment
Figure: 4 Personnel
Figure 5: Events
Total Cost (Accumulative) = $6,300+5,440+13,700+217,170+3,005
=$245,615
Figure: 6 Income Acquired
Total Income: 380,000
Benefits/Year = $380,000-245,615 = $134,385
It is theorized that this education program will result in high levels of positive health benefits for patients. With this initiative, persons with CKD will live more healthy lives and will not require frequent visits to the hospital. The program pushes for proper management, which in turn will result in control of kidney failures and hence reduce the number of patients waiting for a kidney transplant. By promoting the suggested education intervention, it is evident that more patients will record positive health outcomes.
Teaching Plan Proposal
Purpose and Statement of the Overall Goal
This work proposes an education program to train experts in the kidney failure section on the necessity of collaborating in the treatment process. Additionally, the initiative will also seek to coach the patients on how to accommodate various experts assigned to them. The main purpose of this training will be to equip medics with skills that will promote oneness in their operations. Additionally, the trainer will review communication abilities that can aid in uniting the professionals. The literature reviewed in part one has revealed that there is a gap in how the experts conduct their operations. This project aims to improve unity and cooperation and clinicians to ensure improved patient well-being. The intervention will also purpose to train medics on how to give patients unified information to avoid the confusion that comes with having too much information. The project aims to enhance the overall interaction between healthcare workers and enhance patients’ general well-being.
Learning Objectives
The project will be guided by the following learning objectives;
- To understand the importance of collaboration between various specialists to achieve the same goal.
- To ensure that CKD patients comprehend the reason why they have to deal with several specialists and not just one doctor.
- To enhance communication skills among kidney failure experts.
- To improve the interaction between medics and patients to ensure that patients are not overwhelmed by the information.
Content Outline
The following content will guide the program;
- Communication
- Sharing information between experts
- Professionals passing information to patients
- Setting treatment goals
- Involving every specialist in the development of treatment objectives
- Sharing the medication goals with the patient and or their caregivers
- Collaboration in service delivery
- Ensuring that patients get unified information from all the specialist
- Working as one unit but addressing various aspects of CKD.
Instruction Method and Learning Activities
The project will use a teacher-student mode of teaching, an expert with skills and knowledge of CKD will be the source and all the specialists managing CKD will be invited to the program. The expert will teach the specialists following the content outlined in the above section. There will be time for questions and answers, and those in the program will also be allowed time to discuss, challenge, and comment on various topics. There will be various experts touching on different aspects of CKD patients including medication, dialysis, physiotherapy, and psychotherapy. Patients will be taken through a brief session to teach them the reason they are attended to by different specialists and better ways to accommodate all the experts and balance information acquired for various aspects.
Instructional Resources/Teaching (Materials/Tools and Equipment) Needed
The trainers will require teaching materials like writing boards, mark pens, computers, and projectors. The educators will also provide brochures and books for references to trainees. Power and the internet will also be required to access learning materials in form of videos and articles online. Patients will also be provided with takeaway materials that will guide them daily.
Methods for Evaluation of Learning
The effectiveness of the training will be assessed through the;
- Asking questions during the training and assessing whether the trainees comprehend what they are taught.
- At the end of the education program the educators will provide a sit-in examination just to gauge how much the trainees understand.
- The instructors will additionally take time after the training to observe how well the trainees implement what they have learned in real practice.
- The patients will be asked oral questions just to evaluate how much they understand about having to be taken care of by different people.
Expected outcomes
After the training, it is expected that;
- Professionals working with CKD patients will have better communication skills between themselves and also their clients.
- There will be a high collaboration between different experts for advanced patient outcomes.
- That the patient will have access to clear information from the healthcare provides
- That the service delivery in the CKD unit will improve and in turn enhance patients’ wellbeing.
References
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