The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) has today launched NKF Patient Journey: Chronic Kidney Disease, a new interactive, online learning tool that it hopes will aid people living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) in learning more about the condition in a personalised way.
The NKF says that its new interactive learning experience offers content in a “dynamic and engaging way”, using an initial online survey that encourages users to answer questions regarding their health so that they can receive information tailored to their particular stage of kidney disease and what is required to manage their CKD and achieve optimal kidney health.
This new tool that NFK are providing offers various learning journeys, covering topics such as CKD stages 1-5, dialysis, and kidney transplantation, and addresses conditions related to CKD, including pre-diabetes, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and obesity. The foundation states that, in order to tailor a user’s journey, the tool captures information about each learner’s kidney health, such as whether they have been told they have CKD, what laboratory data they have available about their kidney health, and whether they have any co-morbidities (i.e., pre-diabetes, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and obesity). People who are unsure if they have CKD are given basic information about CKD and questions to ask their healthcare team.
This new offering from the NKF also features cloud-based responsive learning. The learning journey branches into different paths based on each learner’s responses, incorporating text, graphics, videos, and other visuals into manageable segments that allow the learner to focus on a particular topic or subtopic. The online learning tool also includes links to other NKF resources, so the learner can explore specific aspects of living with CKD.
The NFK argues that, as many people rely on information found online to help them better understand the health information their clinician told them about during their last office visit, its new learning platform will help people living with CKD filter through the volumes of information available on the internet based on their particular kidney health journey. Having comprehensive, evidence-based, freely available resources that guide people through essential information is a benefit to busy clinicians, it states. Information provided in an easy-to-understand format helps patients understand what they can do today to take better control of their kidney health.
Sharing his thoughts on the new learning tool, NKF chief medical officer (CMO) Joseph Vassalotti, said: “NKF Patient Journey: Chronic Kidney Disease was developed for adult learners because there are many obstacles to patient education that arise not only in primary care but also in specialty care settings. This innovative tool offers those living with CKD at varying levels of health literacy the individualised health information they need to navigate their kidney health journey. People living with kidney diseases want to know what kidney disease means and what can be done to improve kidney health on an individualised basis.”
“Learning you have kidney disease is oftentimes frightening and frustrating because there is a lot of new information to parse through; those living with CKD need information that is understandable and actionable,” added Kevin Longino, NKF chief executive officer (CEO) and a kidney transplant recipient. “NKF Patient Journey: Chronic Kidney Disease was created for those who might be overwhelmed by their diagnosis and all the information on the internet, doctor visits, and social media forums. NKF is committed to being a credible source of information for every person living with kidney disease, or a kidney transplant, so they can make informed decisions about their particular stage and type of kidney disease.”
