American Nephrology Nurses Association Issues Statement of Caution: Home Dialysis Care

PITMAN, N.J. - March 15, 2022 - PRLog -- The American Nephrology Nurses Association (ANNA), a more than 8,000-member strong nursing organization serving and advancing the nephrology nursing specialty, is issuing a call for clarity, caution and reassessment of recommendations presented in the recently released Innovate Kidney Care Winter 2022 position paper, Recommended Changes to Conditions for Coverage to Improve and Modernize Kidney Care.

The paper recommends, in response to registered nursing shortages, the delivery of managed kidney care and home dialysis through multidisciplinary care teams not trained or supervised by qualified registered nurses and, in some instances, trained exclusively by home dialysis device manufacturers, under the oversight of a dialysis facility nurse.

Of particular concern to ANNA is the recommendation to "remove the requirement that RNs conduct training" and maintain a structured "oversight and participation" in the practice of home dialysis.

"We cannot imagine a potentially more compromised approach to ensuring competent, qualified home dialysis care," reports ANNA President Dave Walz, MBA, BSN, RN, CNN, FACHE, "ANNA works tirelessly in the support of advocating only sound educational programs that are optimized to develop, maintain, and deliver high-quality kidney care. We actively support a cross-disciplinary team approach to patient care and wellness and, while we support interdisciplinary collaboration in delivering high-quality, cost-effective kidney care, we are deeply concerned with the recommendations reflected in the position paper in question."

A sustainable home dialysis process starts with education and training by a qualified nephrology registered nurse. Involving the nephrology registered nurse at the beginning of the process leads to development of a professional patient relationship that fosters trust, familiarity, and communication. This is an important step in identifying learning needs and managing patient therapy challenges. Early identification of challenges and learning needs is imperative to long-term therapy success.

ABOUT ANNA (http://www.annanurse.org)

The American Nephrology Nurses Association improves members' lives through education, advocacy, networking, and science. Since it was established as a nonprofit organization in 1969, ANNA has been serving members who span the nephrology nursing spectrum. ANNA has a membership of over 8,000 registered nurses and other health care professionals at all levels of practice. Members work in such areas as conservative management, peritoneal dialysis, hemodialysis, continuous renal replacement therapies, transplantation, industry, and government/regulatory agencies. ANNA is committed to advancing the nephrology nursing specialty and nurturing every ANNA member. We achieve these goals by providing the highest quality educational products, programs, and services. ANNA advocates for patients, mentor each other, and lobby legislators, all to inspire excellence. For more information visit www.annanurse.org or contact 888-600-2662. Follow @ANNAnurses.