The effect of coaching on health information literacy in patients with chronic kidney disease: a randomized controlled trial

Since chronic kidney disease is highly insidious in the early stages, most diagnosed patients have already developed irreversible renal failure. There is a lack of effective implementation and standardization of health education management for patients with chronic kidney disease, and the impact of health education management on health information literacy is not yet known.

This randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted from March 2022 to March 2023. A total of 130 patients with chronic kidney disease stage 3-4 were selected from a tertiary hospital in Zhuhai via a convenience sampling method and were then randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. The Health Information Literacy Questionnaire for Chronic Kidney Disease was used to assess the health literacy of the patients at month 0 and month 12. In addition, the renal function-related indices of the patients were measured before and after the intervention. The study adhered to SPIRIT guidelines.

There was no significant difference between the two groups in health information literacy, platelet count, estimated glomerular filtration rate, or albumin level. However, the intervention group showed a significant improvement in health behavioral status such as information acquisition, checkups, and physical activity. Subgroup analysis revealed that hemoglobin was significantly higher in non-employed patients than in the intervention group. There was a significant improvement in hemoglobin level after receiving health guidance in patients with intermediate education, and acquisition capacity and estimated glomerular filtration rate in the intervention group were lower than in the control group for patients with elementary education.

Receiving health coaching helped to improve self-management behaviors and hemoglobin levels of patients with stage 3-4 chronic kidney disease. Education level is an important factor influencing the effectiveness of health coaching techniques.

This study was prospectively registered in the China Clinical Trial Registry on November 10, 2021, with registration number: ChiCTR2100053103.