Dr Cynthia Delgado Explains How Patients With Disabilities Experience Kidney Care Differently

Physical disabilities may make it difficult for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) to follow provider recommendations and achieve a good therapeutic alliance, which can lead to increased burden of illness, according to Cynthia Delgado, MD, associate professor of medicine at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center and University of California San Francisco Medical Center.

Transcript

How do people with physical disabilities experience kidney care differently?

Well, it really is about the context of the disability itself. I think if patients are experiencing CKD care, similar to someone who doesn’t necessarily have the particular disability that they may have, we may end up putting an additional burden on that individual with regards to simple things like taking medications following nutritional recommendations. If you have issues with your sight or your hearing or other physical disabilities, those simple directions or directives may actually increase the challenges of you achieving a good therapeutic alliance with your provider.

What are the potential consequences of the disparities experienced by people with disabilities?

Well, one of the major potential consequences in my mind is that the patient themselves has an increased burden of essentially doing the things that others may not have that burden of completing. And additionally, that burden may actually translate into other issues and other aspects of the patient’s life, including inability to really function within the confines of their life space.