Hemo RN
Joined: 24 Feb 2003
Posts: 17
Posted: Sun Mar 09, 2003 2:38 pm Post subject: Patient education
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I gather from many of the discussions that most of you think that dialysis professionals miss the boat on patient education. Can you offer me suggestions on what patient education should be offered and by what means of communication? What do patients want to know about? I gather it is not K+ control. Any suggestions or ideas would be appreciated.
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Lin
Joined: 28 Oct 2002
Posts: 337
Posted: Sun Mar 09, 2003 2:46 pm Post subject: Education
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Hi Hemo RN, Thankyou for asking! I happen to think K control is very important and pts. should be educated on it. However, it should not be the only thing pts. are taught. I realize it's hard to educate because some pts. want to know everything, and some pts. want to be cared for and know relatively little, and there's a whole bunch of pts. that fit in between. My advice is take each individuals pts. level of knowledge and comprehension into consideration. Perhaps having a nurse educator on hand would be helpfull. <
> I know sometimes staff is pressed for time so perhaps having the pts. who can better understand things explain it to fellow pts. might also be a good idea, kind of mentoring. I do that now if another pts. doesn't seem to understand something and asks me for help.<
>Note that the best educators are nurses who trully care!!! Lin.
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Jeff S
Joined: 09 Mar 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Sun Mar 09, 2003 8:57 pm Post subject: education that works
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Too many staff don't have enough real dialysis education. If you don't know an answer PLEASE don't fake it. Please don't pass on info you heard somewhere and have assumed is true. Too many of you are passing on inaccurate info. Get a nurse educator who really knows her stuff to train the staff. I've heard there are traveling nurse educators who will come to your unit and do free inservices on just about any subject. After staff is properly trained, they should be able to answer most patients' questions. If there's a question you don't know the answer to, all you have to say is, "I'm sorry, I dont know the answer to that, but I will find someone who does and get back to you asap". Then find a nurse educator who knows the answer and report back to the patient. Or hire a nurse educator to make rounds and answer patients' questions directly.<
><
>Answer a patient's questions at the teachable moment. He will need info prior to the very next tx so the problem doesn't repat itself again. Next month is too late! <
><
>Also, shame on nephrologists who aren't educated on dialysis. They may be educated on kidneys, bp etc, but are not educated on the dialysis tx and don't know one button from another on the machine. There is something wrong when a nephrologist says, "I dunno" everytime a patient asks him why something in the tx is affecting him the way it is. He should be the most educated one around and not leave everything to staff to figure out.
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leadsag
Joined: 31 Oct 2002
Posts: 263
Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2003 5:20 am Post subject: education
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I learned more about dialysis treatments in one day of reading posts on Dialysis ethics than I had learned in 9 years of dialysis treatments!!!
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Lin
Joined: 28 Oct 2002
Posts: 337
Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2003 5:46 am Post subject: WOW!
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Hey Leadsag, Scarey huh? Lin.
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Curious
Joined: 02 Feb 2003
Posts: 39
Posted: Wed Mar 12, 2003 7:02 am Post subject: should be ongoing
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Education should be on going.
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Darlene7
Joined: 15 Mar 2003
Posts: 2
Posted: Sat Mar 15, 2003 9:16 pm Post subject: Yes, but how do you GET them interested?
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Most of the patients in my unit don't have the desire to know how to calculate their own goals, keep track of fluids, or learn anything about the machine... it almost makes me think that some form of patient education should be mandatory, since waiting for these patients to show any interest will be a LONG wait!
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Disgusted
Joined: 26 Jan 2003
Posts: 45
Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2003 1:32 am Post subject: Mandatory education?
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OK, this sounds like a good plan but what about the patients that are new to dialysis that come in half dead on a stretcher?? I could barely sign a form when the doctor put me on dialysis years ago, I don't think that some patients can go through the grueling multiple forms and orientation that is required today. Maybe give a new patient a six month window for a mandatory education program.<
>'
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Darlene7
Joined: 15 Mar 2003
Posts: 2
Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2003 5:01 am Post subject: 6-month window
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That's a good idea-- I remember that when I started dialysis, all I focused on was the pain; any education would have flown right over my head.<
><
>It seems like everyone does things TO you when you start dialysis... I think that if patients did something FOR themselves, like becoming educated, it would make them feel like they had some control over what's happening. At least they'd know when serious mistakes are being made, instead of just 'going along for the ride!'
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Lin
Joined: 28 Oct 2002
Posts: 337
Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2003 7:46 am Post subject: The optimal time
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for learning would be BEFORE starting dialysis. I learned much after of course, but my real education began long prior to starting dialysis. Unless one has sudden kideny failure they should start their education prior to the need for dialysis. Perhaps when pts. are first dx. with a kidney problem education should begin. <
>There are many at the unit where I go that are there because they've had uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension for years on end, because years ago no one was really educated about the effects these things can have on the kidneys. Perhaps "pre" education is the way to go; less people would ultimately end up on dialysis, or perhaps not end up there at such a young age. We really need to do a better job of educating the public how certain lifestyle habits can affect their kidneys adversely. Lin.
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Disgusted
Joined: 26 Jan 2003
Posts: 45
Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2003 12:54 pm Post subject: pre is good too!
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Pre would be a better time. I had no idea that dialysis would not be torture because I went to HMO doctor and back then you basically had your 15 minutes with nephrologist. Nurse told me about diet but forgot to tell me about fluid problems, until I had a cold and started in with honey-lemon tea and juices then wham I was in ICU and nephrologist told me I was terminal if I did not go on treatment. Fifteen minutes after treatment began I felt fine and kept waiting for the extreme pain
to begin from dialysis (the pain began when I left ICU and went to clinic and began in the butt from psycho babble from staff).
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XTECH
Joined: 17 Mar 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2003 5:54 am Post subject: Education
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The units I worked out had education before if possible. But they also had an educational nurse who visited the units and sat with the patient and explained all that was going on around them. Our patients did well and when the for-profit came to town,they let the educational nurses go. <
>The patients then were merely put on the machines with total chaos and also were used in training staff. After all what did they know.<
>It needs to be a hands on and not just throwing patients on and walk away. These companies can do better,they just dont want to or have to.<
>I would at least like to have new patients paired with an educated patient,but that wont happen either.<
>Everything was written in a 5th or 6th grade level. Always wondered why they didnt give out crayolas with it,only the cost was too much.<
>We can do better and until the Standards of Care come out they merely will continue as they have in the past. Truly not accountable to no one.
