Bridging The Gap

Bridging the Gap: Ensuring Patient Access to Home Therapies

In November 2021, QUANTA joined politicians, leading nephrologists, nurses, patients and charities from across the UK kidney community at a Westminster roundtable to understand the barriers preventing patients from choosing and accessing the care they want to receive throughout their dialysis journey.

The following recommendations and downloadable report are intended to support the work of the Renal Services Transformation Programme in reaching their target of getting 20% of patients dialysing at home, and to support patients themselves in realising the benefits of home therapies.

Click here to access the report

Recommendation 1

Dialysis centres should pro-actively and universally offer educational and psychological support to people undergoing dialysis at all stages of their journey. The goal should be to gradually build knowledge, skills and confidence ensuring that they are dialysing in the right way for them at the time.

Recommendation 2

All dialysis centre staff should receive updated training to build their home dialysis knowledge to enable positive discussions with patients, and conversations should focus on finding solutions and not highlighting the barriers.

Recommendation 3

Information for patients about transitioning to home therapies should be standardised and include details of the practical and financial support available. This should include a consistent approach to power and water bill contributions from the NHS to ensure nationwide equity. The Government should ensure that educational resources are also provided to local authorities, enabling them to respond appropriately to the needs of people in their area who want to choose home therapies.

Recommendation 4

At all stages of the dialysis decision making process, suitable peer support or home dialysis patient mentors should be offered. Additionally, support from a consistent team of professionals is critical to build trust and continuity of care. This could be done virtually or in person, according to the needs of each individual considering or undergoing home dialysis.

Recommendation 5

A review of dialysis reimbursement should take place to ensure training and educational needs can be met, and also to incentivise higher frequency dialysis at home, such as alternate day treatments, to support all dialysis centres to meet their 20% target.

Click here to access the final report

Disclaimer: The SC+ Haemodialysis system is FDA-cleared for use on patients with acute and/or chronic renal failure when administered by a trained person in an acute or chronic care facility. It is not indicated for home use in the USA.