Emerging Need for Pre-Dialysis Nurses to Overcome the Growing Kidney Disease Burden in Pakistan

Abstract

According to the Global Burden of Disease, chronic kidney disease (CKD) was Pakistan's eighth most common cause of death in 2017. After having end-stage renal disease, most patients prefer hemodialysis as Kidney Replacement Therapy (KRT) because of the lack of kidney donors. There are specific fears related to hemodialysis therapy, but a multidisciplinary approach is required to remove the concern. Along with this, kidney disease is an irreversible condition; the primary goal of treatment is to delay disease progression. To accomplish this goal, pre-dialysis nurses can intervene in kidney disease stage III to delay the deterioration of kidney function and prevent further complications through health education and strengthening patients' self-care behavior. Employing pre-dialysis nurses in the nephrology clinics will be beneficial to the healthcare system as it will reduce hospital costs by reducing the number of hospital admissions, slow the progression of kidney disease, and, therefore, defer the requirement for dialysis therapy. However, multiple challenges exist to introducing pre-dialysis nurses in the healthcare sector, but through proper planning, these challenges can be overcome, and better health outcomes can be achieved. This position aims to highlight the vital role of pre-dialysis care nurses in the healthcare sector, their responsibilities with supporting arguments, the Chronic Care Model, challenges, and recommendations to overcome those challenges.