In September 2020 the NKF hosted a webinar, discussing home dialysis during Covid-19. During the webinar, it was revealed that patients who dialysed at home were at a substantially lower risk of contracting and dying of Covid-19, compared to people who dialysed in a hospital.

Dr Graham Lipkin, president of the Renal Association, highlighted the impact Covid-19 had had on dialysis patients and shared national findings on home dialysis from the draft Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) report. There were also presentations from patients and carers, giving their view on home dialysis and its benefits.

We are now embarking on a national campaign to increase home dialysis in the UK. We have produced a 28-page report which makes seven recommendations on how the NHS can increase home dialysis provision. The campaign will focus on the disproportionate impact Covid-19 has had on patients who dialyse in a centre. We have written to clinical leads of renal services and to all chairs of Kidney Patient Associations (KPAs) to request their support in encouraging more patients to dialyse at home.

Data published by the UK Renal Registry, based on information up to 25^th November 2020 in England, shows that 3,115 (15%) of in-centre haemodialysis (ICHD) patients were infected with Covid-19 and 3.1% died within 28 days of infection. In comparison, 5.3% of patients who dialysed at home in England became infected with Covid-19 and 1.3% died. This shows that patients who dialysed at home were able to protect themselves significantly better from Covid-19 compared to those who dialysed in a centre.

Download a copy of the report

The key recommendations from the report:

1. All adult renal units in the UK should reach a minimum prevalence rate of 20% of their dialysis population on home dialysis (peritoneal and home haemodialysis) by the end of 2024.
2. Clinical directors of renal services in the UK should review their arrangements for shared decision making about dialysis options with patients by the end of 2021.
3. The Renal Dialysis and Transplant Clinical Reference Group for renal services should review the current national service specifications for home dialysis and establish 'integrated commissioning' by the end of 2021. Both home haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis pathways should be examined through the Renal Services Transformation Programme to identify levers that can lead to a system change within the NHS by 2021.
4. Clinical directors of renal services in the UK should review the staffing allocated to home dialysis and their training by the end of 2021.
5. Clinical directors of renal units in the UK should develop a plan to address barriers to home dialysis faced by patients from BAME backgrounds and patients who suffer high levels of deprivation by the end of 2021.
6. The NKF will lead on reviewing the current information available for patients and carers considering home dialysis and develop a plan to improve it so that it meets the needs of all patients and carers by the end of 2021.
7. The Renal Association and the British Renal Society should arrange quality improvement events to promote home dialysis in all regions of the UK by the end of 2021.

How you can help with the campaign

We are asking our supporters to get involved with the campaign by writing to the clinical director of renal services at the NHS Trusts in their areas about the report, and offer the support of your KPA to promote home dialysis.

If you are a member of a KPA, please share the report with other members and with your consultants.

We will be establishing a peer support service for home dialysis patients and carers by the end of 2021. This will give people currently dialysing in-centre the opportunity to talk in confidence to patients and carers with first-hand experience of home dialysis.

If you would like to join the peer support service, or can help in any way, or for more information, please contact us at [email protected] or on 01909 544 999.

You can also write a letter to your local MP, urging them to raise this issue with the chief executives of the NHS Trusts in their constituencies. A template of the letter can be found here.

Contacting your local MP is very quick and easy. You can write an email or letter to them at their constituency address. 

If you aren't sure who your MP is, you can find them by heading to the UK Parliament's website and entering your postcode.

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We would like to thank Fresenius Medical Care for their support with the webinar and report and for providing the images used in the banner on this page.