Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectives
BackgroundThe global COVID-19 pandemic transformed healthcare services in ways that have impacted individual physical and psychological health. The substantial health challenges routinely faced by dialysis-dependent patients with advanced kidney disease have increased considerably during the ongoing...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-11-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1185411/full |
| _version_ | 1797627507690700800 |
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| author | Krystell Oviedo Flores Krystell Oviedo Flores Tanja Stamm Tanja Stamm Seth L. Alper Valentin Ritschl Valentin Ritschl Andreas Vychytil |
| author_facet | Krystell Oviedo Flores Krystell Oviedo Flores Tanja Stamm Tanja Stamm Seth L. Alper Valentin Ritschl Valentin Ritschl Andreas Vychytil |
| author_sort | Krystell Oviedo Flores |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundThe global COVID-19 pandemic transformed healthcare services in ways that have impacted individual physical and psychological health. The substantial health challenges routinely faced by dialysis-dependent patients with advanced kidney disease have increased considerably during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic but remain inadequately investigated. We therefore decided to analyze and compare the perspectives of dialysis patients on their own needs and challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic with those of their professional healthcare providers through interviews with both groups.MethodsQualitative study of seven in-center hemodialysis patients, seven peritoneal dialysis patients, seven dialysis nurses, and seven physicians at the Medical University of Vienna between March 2020 and February 2021, involving content analysis of semi-structured interviews supported by a natural language processing technique.ResultsAmong the main themes emerging from interviews with patients were: (1) concerns about being a ‘high-risk patient’; (2) little fear of COVID-19 as a patient on hemodialysis; (3) questions about home dialysis as a better choice than in-center dialysis. Among the main themes brought up by physicians and nurses were: (1) anxiety, sadness, and loneliness of peritoneal dialysis patients; (2) negative impact of changes in clinical routine on patients’ well-being; (3) telehealth as a new modality of care.ConclusionPreventive measures against COVID-19 (e.g., use of facemasks, distancing, isolation), the introduction of telemedicine, and an increase in home dialysis have led to communication barriers and reduced face-to-face and direct physical contact between healthcare providers and patients. Physicians did not perceive the full extent of patients’ psychological burdens. Selection/modification of dialysis modality should include analysis of the patient’s support network and proactive discussion between dialysis patients and their healthcare providers about implications of the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic. Modification of clinical routine care to increase frequency of psychological evaluation should be considered in anticipation of future surges of COVID-19 or currently unforeseen pandemics. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:25:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-fa3add8362c54d80a3a1a22b410a9b64 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T10:25:17Z |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-fa3add8362c54d80a3a1a22b410a9b642023-11-15T17:32:09ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782023-11-011410.3389/fpsyg.2023.11854111185411Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectivesKrystell Oviedo Flores0Krystell Oviedo Flores1Tanja Stamm2Tanja Stamm3Seth L. Alper4Valentin Ritschl5Valentin Ritschl6Andreas Vychytil7Division of Nephrology and Dialysis, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, AustriaBaxter Healthcare GmbH, Vienna, AustriaInstitute of Outcomes Research, Center for Medical Data Science, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, AustriaLudwig Boltzmann Institute for Arthritis and Rehabilitation, Vienna, AustriaDivision of Nephrology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United StatesInstitute of Outcomes Research, Center for Medical Data Science, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, AustriaLudwig Boltzmann Institute for Arthritis and Rehabilitation, Vienna, AustriaDivision of Nephrology and Dialysis, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, AustriaBackgroundThe global COVID-19 pandemic transformed healthcare services in ways that have impacted individual physical and psychological health. The substantial health challenges routinely faced by dialysis-dependent patients with advanced kidney disease have increased considerably during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic but remain inadequately investigated. We therefore decided to analyze and compare the perspectives of dialysis patients on their own needs and challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic with those of their professional healthcare providers through interviews with both groups.MethodsQualitative study of seven in-center hemodialysis patients, seven peritoneal dialysis patients, seven dialysis nurses, and seven physicians at the Medical University of Vienna between March 2020 and February 2021, involving content analysis of semi-structured interviews supported by a natural language processing technique.ResultsAmong the main themes emerging from interviews with patients were: (1) concerns about being a ‘high-risk patient’; (2) little fear of COVID-19 as a patient on hemodialysis; (3) questions about home dialysis as a better choice than in-center dialysis. Among the main themes brought up by physicians and nurses were: (1) anxiety, sadness, and loneliness of peritoneal dialysis patients; (2) negative impact of changes in clinical routine on patients’ well-being; (3) telehealth as a new modality of care.ConclusionPreventive measures against COVID-19 (e.g., use of facemasks, distancing, isolation), the introduction of telemedicine, and an increase in home dialysis have led to communication barriers and reduced face-to-face and direct physical contact between healthcare providers and patients. Physicians did not perceive the full extent of patients’ psychological burdens. Selection/modification of dialysis modality should include analysis of the patient’s support network and proactive discussion between dialysis patients and their healthcare providers about implications of the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic. Modification of clinical routine care to increase frequency of psychological evaluation should be considered in anticipation of future surges of COVID-19 or currently unforeseen pandemics.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1185411/fullanxietyCOVID-19dialysis expertshemodialysisisolationperitoneal dialysis |
| spellingShingle | Krystell Oviedo Flores Krystell Oviedo Flores Tanja Stamm Tanja Stamm Seth L. Alper Valentin Ritschl Valentin Ritschl Andreas Vychytil Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectives Frontiers in Psychology anxiety COVID-19 dialysis experts hemodialysis isolation peritoneal dialysis |
| title | Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectives |
| title_full | Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectives |
| title_fullStr | Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectives |
| title_full_unstemmed | Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectives |
| title_short | Challenges to dialysis treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of patients’ and experts’ perspectives |
| title_sort | challenges to dialysis treatment during the covid 19 pandemic a qualitative study of patients and experts perspectives |
| topic | anxiety COVID-19 dialysis experts hemodialysis isolation peritoneal dialysis |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1185411/full |
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