GUIDE, a structured pre-dialysis programme that increases the use of home dialysis

Despite the many advantages it offers, the percentage of dialysis patients that receive home dialysis [peritoneal dialysis (PD) or home haemodialysis (HHD)] in the Netherlands has declined over the last decade. Pre-dialysis education could stimulate the use of home dialysis. This article presents the results of the pre-dialysis programme GUIDE, with regard to the following question: Does the implementation of a structured pre-dialysis programme with a home-focused approach increase the number of pre-dialysis patients that choose and receive home dialysis?

The GUIDE process starts when a patient has an eGFR of 15 mL/min/1.73 m². The process begins with a home visit from a case manager and the completion of questionnaires by the patient, the case manager and the nephrologist. A multidisciplinary meeting (MDM) is held to determine a specific patient profile (or treatment recommendation). This is followed by patient education, a second MDM and finally the selection of the treatment by the patient and the nephrologist. This retrospective observational study describes the selection process of all patients that received a treatment recommendation between 12 September 2013 and 18 December 2014 at Meander Medical Centre. Data were collected by file research and analysis of questionnaires.

One hundred and two patients were included. They started the process at a mean eGFR of 12.3 mL/min/1.73 m². Home dialysis was recommended for 62.8% of the patients who were advised to have dialysis treatment. Of the patients that opted for dialysis, 34.2% chose PD and 8.2% chose HHD; 22.9% started home dialysis as their first therapy, compared with 17.6% in the months before implementation of GUIDE. Finally, 32.1% of the patients that received dialysis therapy received home dialysis. In the months before GUIDE, an average of just 19.5% of the patients that received dialysis received home dialysis.

In comparison to historical data, the pre-dialysis programme GUIDE increases the number of patients that choose and receive home dialysis.