We were treated to a PowerPoint presentation with a lot of facts around the psychological and sexual problems suffered by many renal patients and the support - or lack of - experienced by patients. We considered the impact of chronic illness on relationships and the fact that a European three year study showed depression in HD patients was an alarming 16.2 per cent. From the wealth of information offered and discussions, there appeared to be a general consensus of agreement that chronic illness was not simply a medical problem and that support was desperately needed on a psychological basis as well.

There was the question of whether we ought to work towards incorporating discussions about sexuality in the everyday management of renal replacement therapy and this appeared to have a roughly even split. Some felt this would be good for patients while others felt it was inappropriate due to the nature of the problem and the fact that nursing staff are already under pressure to offer medical support.

There was also the assumption that patients WANT to talk to staff and while not all staff feel comfortable discussing issues, many patients are equally uncomfortable, and one suggestion was that staff communicate information on the availability of external support: social workers/counsellors/Relate etc. This could be addressed by a simple information leaflet freely available in dialysis units/clinics etc.

Two members mentioned that their hospitals held pre-dialysis seminars which were followed by an informal evening when new patients could talk freely to others who had experienced some of these problems. While this is laudable, I have concerns that it is being left to patients and is not being responsibly addressed by the NHS and from the discussions it appeared that many thought it essential to adopt a more holistic approach to chronic illness and renal failure in particular.

Although nothing concrete came from this workshop, I feel it has served its purpose in raising awareness of the woefully inadequate support offered to renal patients. As with most aspects of care, this is not something which can be dealt with via a ‘knee-jerk’ reaction of setting up informal groups but it is up to all of us to network and liaise with others to see what we want to achieve and to make small steps toward those goals.



Next >>Workshop - Diabetes and Renal Disease

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