As a medical student nearing the end of his degree, I’m confronted with the inevitable prospect of providing care for patients whose biomedical management is only one critical piece of the puzzle in their wellbeing. During my renal medicine rotation I met many patients like this. In many instances it was difficult to find a patient who wasn’t psychosocially deeply affected by the restrictive and life-controlling nature of maintenance haemodialysis. It was easy to get the impression that with ineligibility for renal transplant, life on haemodialysis was a fate worse than death. In a study by (1) it was found that many new patients feared that death was imminent. It reveals the importance of adequate patient education, ultimately so that they
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It is likely that mental health is greatly influenced by the lifestyle associated with haemodialysis as well as the patient’s experience of the disease. On the same token, psychosocial factors may in turn perpetuate these challenges. In this reflection I will be focusing on the mental health challenges associated with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and maintenance …show more content…
During my rotation I learnt that there are a variety of support services available including psychotherapy. Cognitive behavioural therapy and referral to long-term local community-based counseling is often prescribed. Cognitive behavioural therapy in these cases can hone in on the most overwhelming frustrations the patient is able to identify. It tends to be associated with particular symptoms, and grief over the life that they thought they would have but are unable to have due to all the planning associated with dialysis. In most instances there are several bothersome interconnected aspects of life on haemodialysis, but a slow and steady approach focusing on one symptom or frustration at a time is what seems to work. As a future doctor, it was useful hearing of this approach as the prospect of attempting to help a patient with this degree of challenges is overwhelming. As the treatment process is long-term in most cases, there is time to overcome each obstacle one at a time with the potential to see improvements along the
It is likely that mental health is greatly influenced by the lifestyle associated with haemodialysis as well as the patient’s experience of the disease. On the same token, psychosocial factors may in turn perpetuate these challenges. In this reflection I will be focusing on the mental health challenges associated with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and maintenance …show more content…
During my rotation I learnt that there are a variety of support services available including psychotherapy. Cognitive behavioural therapy and referral to long-term local community-based counseling is often prescribed. Cognitive behavioural therapy in these cases can hone in on the most overwhelming frustrations the patient is able to identify. It tends to be associated with particular symptoms, and grief over the life that they thought they would have but are unable to have due to all the planning associated with dialysis. In most instances there are several bothersome interconnected aspects of life on haemodialysis, but a slow and steady approach focusing on one symptom or frustration at a time is what seems to work. As a future doctor, it was useful hearing of this approach as the prospect of attempting to help a patient with this degree of challenges is overwhelming. As the treatment process is long-term in most cases, there is time to overcome each obstacle one at a time with the potential to see improvements along the