Educational interventions to improve access to living kidney donation

Abstract

For many patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), the preferred treatment is kidney transplantation via living kidney donor transplantation (LKDT). When compared to renal dialysis, LKDT offers improved patient outcomes and greatly reduced healthcare spending. However, in recent years, living donation rates have stagnated. To identify patient education, as a means of improving living donation rates, this thesis aimed to review and synthesize findings from patient education intervention studies aimed at improving informed consent and patient knowledge related to LKDT. This is a Cochrane style systematic review protocol (outlining the plan for the review) and systematic review with a descriptive synthesis of quantitative studies adhering to PRISMA guidelines. The systematic review identified 27 outcomes across 15 studies that met our inclusion criteria. Findings from this review demonstrate that patient education is linked with improved self-efficacy, increase in knowledge, and decreased concerns on the part of patients. More research is needed, however, to consider how these findings can apply in Canadian contexts.