Lived Experiences of Patients with End-Stage Kidney Disease on Dialysis at Scottish Livingstone Hospital, Kweneng District, Botswana
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70619/vol5iss4pp17-30710Keywords:
Lived experiences, end-stage kidney disease, dialysis patients, hemodialysisAbstract
End-Stage Kidney Disease (ESKD) is a public health problem with increasing prevalence in Botswana. There is limited evidence on ESKD patients' experience in managing the condition. Therefore, this research investigated the lived experiences of ESKD patients undergoing dialysis in Botswana. This study adopted an interpretative phenomenological research design. The research used 16 ESKD patients undergoing dialysis at the Scottish Livingstone Hospital. Semi-structured, audiotaped interviews were used for data collection. Collected data was transcribed and analysed thematically to identify shared patterns related to the participants lived experiences. Thematic analysis yielded themes and sub-themes representing the participants’ experiences with ESKD. The themes included: Dialysis as demanding (subthemes: Time Burden, disrupted daily routines, Long Dialysis hours); Dialysis experiences (subthemes: predialysis anxiety, Mixed feelings during dialysis, Post dialysis Exhaustion) and Physical Symptoms (subthemes: Persistent fatigue and weakness, Pain and swelling, Respiratory and Systemic distress) In summary, this study showed ESKD and dialysis to be considerably demanding for the patients. Patients had mixed experiences before, during, and after dialysis. ESKD patients have to battle dialysis symptoms daily, which affect their well-being and quality of life. Based on the findings this study advocates for dialysis centres in Botswana to be increased to enhance treatment access and lower disease burden, more healthcare providers to be trained on renal care that include Patient-centred care to address healthcare disparities and increase treatment access, for ESKD patient support programs to be implemented to help them cope with predialysis anxiety, mixed feelings during dialysis and post dialysis exhaustion also to strengthen and support ESKD social programs. Policies and strategies that lessen ESKD disease burden and improve the quality of life for ESKD patients should be adopted.
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