Provision of transplant education for patients starting dialysis: Disparities persist

Vincenzo Villani; Luca Bertuzzi; Gabriel Butler; Paul Eliason; James W Roberts; Nicole DePasquale; Christine Park; Lisa M McElroy; Ryan C McDevitt

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e36542

Provision of transplant education for patients starting dialysis: Disparities persist

Heliyon. 2024 Aug 19;10(17):e36542. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e36542. eCollection 2024 Sep 15.

Authors

Vincenzo Villani¹, Luca Bertuzzi², Gabriel Butler³, Paul Eliason^{4

5}, James W Roberts^{5

6}, Nicole DePasquale⁷, Christine Park⁸, Lisa M McElroy⁷, Ryan C McDevitt^{2

5

6

9}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Surgery, McGovern Medical School, UT Health Houston, Houston, TX, USA.
² Charles River Associates, Boston, MA, USA.
³ Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
⁴ Department of Economics, Brigham Young Unviersity, Provo, UT, USA.
⁵ National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, MA, USA.
⁶ Department of Economics, Duke University, USA.
⁷ Department of Medicine, Duke University, USA.
⁸ Department of Neurological Surgery University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
⁹ Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.

Abstract

Background: All patients starting dialysis should be informed of kidney transplant as a renal replacement therapy option. Prior research has shown disparities in provision of this information. In this study, we aimed to identify patient sociodemographic and dialysis facility characteristics associated with not receiving transplant information at the time of dialysis initiation. We additionally sought to determine the association of receiving transplant information with waitlist and transplant outcomes.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed CMS-2728 forms filed from 2007 to 2019. The primary outcome was report of provision of information about transplant on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Form CMS-2728. For patients not informed at the time of dialysis, we collected the reported reason for not being informed (medically unfit, declined information, unsuitable due to age, psychologically unfit, not assessed, or other). Cox proportional-hazards model estimates were used to study determinants of addition to the waitlist and transplant (secondary outcomes).

Results: Fifteen percent of patients did not receive information about transplant (N = 133,414). Non-informed patients were more likely to be older, female, white, and on Medicare. Patients informed about transplant had a shorter time between end-stage renal disease onset and addition to the waitlist; they also spent a shorter time on the waitlist before receiving a transplant. Patients at chain dialysis facilities were more likely to receive information, but this did not translate into higher waitlist or transplant rates. Patients at independent facilities acquired by chains were more likely to be informed but less likely to be added to the waitlist post acquisition.

Conclusions: Disparities continue to persist in providing information about transplant at initiation of dialysis. Patients who are not informed have reduced access to the transplant waitlist and transplant. Maximizing the number of patients informed could increase the number of patients referred to transplant centers, and ultimately transplanted. However, policy actions should account for differences in protocols stemming from facility ownership.

Keywords: CMS-2728; Patient education; Renal transplant.