Renal

a sub topic of Clinical Transformation

Most recent entries |

  1. Toward greener dialysis: a case study to illustrate and encourage the salvage of reject water

    A Connor, S Milne, A Owen, G Boyle, F Mortimer (2010). Journal of Renal Care, 36(2), 68-72. Climate change is now considered to be a major global public health concern. However, the very provision of health care itself has a significant impact upon the environment. Action must be taken to reduce this impact. Water is a precious and finite natural resource. Vast quantities of high-grade water are required to provide haemodialysis. The reverse osmosis systems used in the purification process reject approximately two-thirds of the water presented to them. Therefore, around 250 litres of 'reject water' result from the production of the dialysate required for one treatment. This good quality reject water is lost-to-drain in the vast majority of centres worldwide. Simple methodologies exist to recycle this water for alternative purposes. We describe here a case study of the only UK renal service we know to have implemented such water-saving methodologies.

    by Andy Connor on 19 May 2010 | Direct link | Comment on this

  2. Electronic consultation as an alternative to hospital referral for patients with chronic kidney disease: a novel application for networked electronic health records to improve the accessibility and efficiency of healthcare.

    Stoves J et al. Qual Saf Health Care. 2010 Jun 16. Problem Chronic kidney disease is increasingly recognised in the UK, leading to a greater demand for specialist services. Traditional means of meeting this demand rely on GP referral of patients to see a nephrologist. Hospital assessment may be inconvenient for patients and inefficient for health services. Setting 17 general practices and a secondary care nephrology service in Bradford, UK. Design A before and after evaluation comparing nephrology referrals from implementation and non-implementation practices following the introduction of electronic consultations (e-consultations) for chronic kidney disease. Key measures for improvement The number, appropriateness and quality of new referrals (paper and electronic) from primary care, the timeliness of responses and the satisfaction of patients and health professionals with the new service. Strategies for change Electronic sharing of primary care electronic health records with the nephrology service was introduced to implementation practices. Participating GPs attended education workshops and…

    from SHEBA on 16 June 2010 | Direct link | Comment on this

  3. Driving round in circles

    by Andy Connor on 13 January 2010 | Comment on this

  4. Going green saves money in kidney care

    by Frances Mortimer on 10 July 2010 | Comment on this

  5. Clinical Transformation: The Key to Green Nephrology

    Andrew Connor, Frances Mortimer, Charles Tomson Nephron Clin Pract 2010;116:c200-c206 (DOI: 10.1159/000317200) Climate change represents a major global public health threat. The very provision of healthcare itself has a significant untoward effect on the environment, to which kidney care is likely to contribute disproportionately. In this article we describe the four principles we believe will underpin a successful transformation to lower carbon kidney care: disease prevention, patient empowerment, lean service delivery and the preferential use of low-carbon technologies. We illustrate their application and their co-benefits, such as improvements in patient care and reductions in cost, with examples.

    from SHEBA on 02 July 2010 | Download | Comment on this