Examination of health literacy in patients undergoing dialysis

Introduction: Health literacy is defined as the extent to which individuals could acquire, process, and understand basic health information and services which make health decisions. Studies have shown that limited health literacy can reach up to 50% of CKD patients and is particularly important in CKD patients due to the complexity of the disease, which requires patient involvement in disease management. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify potential goals and strategic interventions to improve health literacy in patients with CKD. Material and method: This is a systematic review writing based on scientific principles and rules. Bibliographic data were searched from the Greek and English literature on extrarenal dialysis and health literacy. Data sources such as PubMed, and Google Scholar were searched using combinations of the following search terms: health literacy, CKD, hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, and kidney transplant. Results: Patients with CKD take different approaches to health information. Limiting or avoiding health information may be a strategy used by some individuals to cope with illness and does not necessarily mean that health information is inaccessible or difficult to understand. Co-morbidity and fragmented healthcare can make the healthcare system difficult to navigate. A trusting relationship with healthcare providers promotes several aspects of literacy. Recent literature suggests that literacy levels may be associated with clinical outcomes (higher rates of cardiovascular disease, increased frequency of ED visits, more hospitalizations, increased risk of death). Conclusions: Health literacy is an important factor in the kidney disease journey. Tools are available to help health professionals address health literacy in clinical practice. Critical collective efforts are needed to reduce the health impact of low literacy. Furthermore, more studies are needed to understand the impact of literacy on CKD patients

Keywords: chronic kidney disease, health literacy, dialysis, peritoneal dialysis, kidney transplantation, νοσηλευτής