A Qualitative Study on Nurses' Caring Experiences With Individuals With Kidney Failure Receiving Haemodialysis

Kidney failure is a major health issue globally, particularly in Ghana and other low- and middle-income countries. Nurses are centrally involved in the direct care and technical operations of managing individuals with kidney failure, and they have first-hand exposure to the complexities of kidney failure management, including haemodialysis within resource-constrained settings.

This study explored the experiences of nurses who provide care to individuals with kidney failure receiving haemodialysis in Ghana.

A qualitative exploratory descriptive approach was used. Sixteen participants were selected using purposive sampling. Data was collected through in-depth interviews and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.

Four main themes that reflect the experiences of nurses caring for individuals with kidney failure receiving haemodialysis in Ghana were identified, showing that nurses caring for these individuals consider their care as expensive, demanding, suboptimal and emotionally distressing for nurses.

This study provides valuable insights that could enhance the understanding of the meaning and significance of caring for individuals receiving haemodialysis. Improving the haemodialysis caring experiences of nurses in Ghana requires addressing issues related to cost, emotional stress and workload of nurses, and resource availability. Changes to the healthcare system are needed to enhance the experience of patients and medical professionals involved in haemodialysis.