Self-management support for peritoneal dialysis patients.

Area of Science:

• Nephrology
• Patient Care Management
• Health Education

Background:

• Chronic illnesses, especially kidney disease, necessitate advanced management strategies.
• Peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients manage over 90% of their own care, highlighting the importance of self-management.
• Impaired self-management in PD patients leads to significant complications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance self-management capabilities in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients.
• To develop a problem-solving algorithm for fluid balance maintenance.
• To create patient educational materials and an implementation strategy with PD nurses.

Main Methods:

• Development of a fluid balance maintenance algorithm.
• Creation of patient educational sessions on algorithm use.
• Collaboration with PD nurses for intervention strategy development.
• Evaluation using call logs, knowledge tests, and satisfaction questionnaires.

Main Results:

• Reduced patient inquiries regarding fluid balance maintenance.
• Demonstrated increase in patient knowledge post-intervention.
• High overall patient satisfaction with the self-management program.

Conclusions:

• The self-management intervention proved beneficial for PD patients.
• The developed algorithm and educational materials are shareable resources for other clinics.
• The project offers a replicable model for improving PD patient self-care nationwide.