TY - JOUR
T1 - Exploring Nurses’ Supportive Care Practices for Managing Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in a Tertiary Care Facility in Ghana
AU - Akpakli Addo, Joana
AU - Senoo-Dogbey, Vivian Efua
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2025. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
PY - 2025/1/1
Y1 - 2025/1/1
N2 - Background: Chronic kidney disease has become a significant global public health burden due to its increasing incidence, prevalence, and impact on quality of life. Worldwide, conservative management, kidney transplantation, and renal replacement therapy are employed to manage chronic kidney disease. However, in Ghana, conservative management and hemodialysis predominate, focusing on prolonging life while neglecting other supportive care needs. This study explored nurses’ knowledge of kidney supportive care and the measures they adopt to identify and manage the psychological needs of patients with chronic kidney disease. Methods: Exploratory descriptive qualitative design was employed. Eighteen nurses from a tertiary hospital dialysis unit in Ghana were purposively recruited. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a semistructured guide, and thematic analysis was performed using Braun and Clarke's six-step qualitative data analysis method. Results: Nurses’ practices were categorized into two main themes: awareness and emotional/psychological practices. The Awareness theme comprised five subthemes: expert communication, interdisciplinary teams, symptom management, realities, and management challenges. The emotional/psychological practices theme included three subthemes: establishing relationships, identifying needs, and addressing psychological issues. Conclusion: The study revealed that while nurses in Ghanaian dialysis units possess some awareness of kidney support care, their practices are primarily centered on prolonging life rather than addressing holistic patient needs. Psychological and emotional support for chronic kidney disease patients is often informal and lacks structured guidelines. Limited resources and interdisciplinary collaboration hinder comprehensive kidney support care implementation. Strengthening nurses’ knowledge and integrating formal psychological support frameworks are crucial for improving patient-centred care in chronic disease management.
AB - Background: Chronic kidney disease has become a significant global public health burden due to its increasing incidence, prevalence, and impact on quality of life. Worldwide, conservative management, kidney transplantation, and renal replacement therapy are employed to manage chronic kidney disease. However, in Ghana, conservative management and hemodialysis predominate, focusing on prolonging life while neglecting other supportive care needs. This study explored nurses’ knowledge of kidney supportive care and the measures they adopt to identify and manage the psychological needs of patients with chronic kidney disease. Methods: Exploratory descriptive qualitative design was employed. Eighteen nurses from a tertiary hospital dialysis unit in Ghana were purposively recruited. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a semistructured guide, and thematic analysis was performed using Braun and Clarke's six-step qualitative data analysis method. Results: Nurses’ practices were categorized into two main themes: awareness and emotional/psychological practices. The Awareness theme comprised five subthemes: expert communication, interdisciplinary teams, symptom management, realities, and management challenges. The emotional/psychological practices theme included three subthemes: establishing relationships, identifying needs, and addressing psychological issues. Conclusion: The study revealed that while nurses in Ghanaian dialysis units possess some awareness of kidney support care, their practices are primarily centered on prolonging life rather than addressing holistic patient needs. Psychological and emotional support for chronic kidney disease patients is often informal and lacks structured guidelines. Limited resources and interdisciplinary collaboration hinder comprehensive kidney support care implementation. Strengthening nurses’ knowledge and integrating formal psychological support frameworks are crucial for improving patient-centred care in chronic disease management.
KW - chronic kidney disease
KW - conservative therapy
KW - end-stage renal disease
KW - haemodialysis
KW - kidney supportive care
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105010724698
U2 - 10.1177/23779608251350750
DO - 10.1177/23779608251350750
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105010724698
SN - 2377-9608
VL - 11
JO - SAGE Open Nursing
JF - SAGE Open Nursing
M1 - 23779608251350750
ER -
