Digital system helps people with chronic kidney disease

A NEW all-Wales digital system is helping people with chronic kidney disease manage their care through technology and cutting hospital visits.

Developed by the renal unit at Swansea Bay University Health Board and receiving £1.874m in funding from Welsh Government’s Transformational Fund, it is claimed the tools have transformed service delivery, enabling those living with the disease to access their blood results and dosing instructions through a patient portal.

People with chronic kidney disease often face a lifetime of health challenges; most require specialist medicines and some require dialysis or a transplant. The digital platform allows those living with the disease to manage and adjust their treatment from their personal devices and receive high-quality care from any location.

The all-Wales system brings together all kidney care records together allowing the treating clinician and other clinical departments to access blood results and medical and nursing notes remotely from wherever someone is receiving treatment. This allows renal services to offer the same high quality of care across Wales and for information to be shared across settings to better inform decisions about other health conditions.

Featuring 346 nurses and 117 digital prescribers, the digital tool is available to renal units across Wales. With over 45,000 medications administered every month, the tool removes the geographical challenges to accessing services and treatments by allowing treatments to be prescribed from any location and be instantly available wherever the patient is receiving care.

A digital hub has also been produced to provide education material to help people understand and actively manage their condition. For people needing lifelong dialysis, education and training videos, patient stories and documentaries are available to demonstrate the benefits of home dialysis and how it can improve quality of life by giving patients more freedom.