Special Considerations for Nurses of Renal Transplant Patients

For over 13 year I have worked in healthcare and I have seen multiple patients die from organ failure as they waited on the transplant list. I’ve seen patients lose their quality of life as they sit in hospitals for weeks and months at a time as they waited for a kidney transplant. I also know people who have donated the organs of their loved ones and were blessed to know that their loss was the beginning of another person’s life.

During bone marrow transplants children are in the hospital for extended period. During this time the nurse spends a lot of time with the child and family. The parent’s may be more comfortable talking to the nurse when they have question’s and concerns.

Registered nurses join professional nursing organizations for a variety of reasons. Professional organizations and associations of nursing are critical for generating the energy, innovative ideas, and hands-on skills needed to maintain a healthy profession that advocates for the needs of its patients, nurses, and the trust of society. Professional nursing organizations are responsible for supporting the nursing profession, in addition to the well-being of nurses nationwide. The organizations created and offered to practicing nurses are plentiful and offer opportunities such as: continuing education, networking with other professionals, and certifications for specified areas of interest. When searching for a professional organization to become

David Trujillo is a 29-year-old man who was born with renal dysplasia, which caused his kidneys to be too small to work correctly. He has needed four kidney transplants in his life, receiving the first when he was four years old. One kidney came from his father, his aunt, his uncle, and his brother. All four transplants have been successful, and without the transplants Trujillo would have to receive dialysis three times a week for four hours a day (Knoll, 2012). Trujillo’s family has been remarkably generous in donating their own kidneys to keep Trujillo alive. Others, however, are not as lucky as Trujillo.

“There is a need to instil in people's hearts, especially in the hearts of the young, a genuine and deep appreciation of the need for brotherly love, a love that can find expression in the decision to become an organ donor.” Pope John Paul II stated in the Address to International Congress on Transplants. In a culture of death and self-centeredness it is important to prompt the youth to consider becoming an organ donor. The number of people in need of a transplant is growing quickly, and already is at a large rate. Eighteen people will die each day waiting for an organ transplant; more must be done to help these people, yet it must be within the standards of medical ethics.

It's an eye-opener to what transpires in the lives of people with a severe kidney condition, from the day of diagnosis, all through the period of dialysis, transplant, and after transplant. Exploring the themes of the outcomes of strength, hope, faith, and altruism, the narrative gives its readers firsthand information of what goes on in a dialysis unit, which includes the procedural details and the behavior of medical personnel and patients. Furthermore, the author gave an effective description of the characters. He offered crucial insight into their personalities and backgrounds, and consequently, I was able to connect with

Needing a transplant has affected everything that Corey and his family does. He has most of his life ill, very ill, in face often times when you would see him in the past he was green in color and in a lot of constant pain. Corey and his family have spent an unbelievable amount of time with doctors and traveling back and forth from Primary Children’s hospital. Organ donors are needed for students here even at BYU-I. This is something we need to take very serious because you never know when you might need one like Corey did, or someone in your family or maybe someone sitting here in this class today. I am sure that you can see the need for people like you to donate your organs.

I spoke to nurses, and other transplant patients alike. Both lung patients and kidney patients who were waiting, and those who’d had their transplant and were fighting fit. The difference was compelling to see and I wanted to portray this in the script, and to try and promote the positives of organ donation.

The main emphasis of the qualitative research study titled The lived experience of parents and guardians providing care for child transplant recipients is to highlight the trials and tribulations parents and guardians are faced with when caring for a child post transplant (Williams et all, 2012). The study is aimed to direct healthcare members to understand the importance of increasing communication and in hospital education prior to discharge in order to decrease stress and improve long-term survival. Laurel Williams, June Eilers, Judith Heerman, and Karen Smith (2012) out of the University of Nebraska Medical Center developed a study after determining there was a

Specialized nursing care is necessary as patients’ conditions, due to co-morbidities, become more complex. An initiative to encourage registered nurses (RNs) to pursue certifications in their specialty is becoming apparent. Many literatures have evidence supporting the positive impact of national certifications to the professional growth of nurses. Despite foreseeable barriers, many nurses find national certifications valuable to their practice. The purpose of this paper is to explore the transplant nurses ' perceptions of motivators and barriers to obtaining the Certified Clinical Transplant Nurse (CCTN) certification.

As the site content was developed it was apparent that age appropriate information was needed for the child receiving the transplant regarding their diagnosis and treatment. Information was also needed for the siblings of a transplant recipient. Previously, the website gave an in-depth detailed description of adult transplant preparation, but did not give explanations for pediatric patients. Grouping children into age categories (preschool, children ages 6-12, and teenagers) enabled the information regarding transplant basics and preparation to be tailored to a child’s specific developmental level. Creating age groups made the information more concise, and clearly told the parent of a child getting a transplant what actions to take (CDC, 2010).

The interview began with Mr. Suarez medical history overview and how did he became a post –transplant patient. Mr. Suarez was diagnosed with Diabetes Type 1, also known as Juvenile Diabetes, at age 15 after experiencing extreme fatigue and other related symptoms. Unfortunately, due to the lack of improper management his diabetes caused irreversible damage such as blindness and renal failure. Consequently, he began dialysis treatment that summer to stable his condition. Finally, after 18 months of several dialysis treatments he was able to be recipient of a donated pancreas and kidney on January 15th, 2009. During his interview, he details the organ transplantation procedure including testing conducted, cost and the emotional aspects of the

Maori and Pacific people have found it particularly difficult to get a transplant and are experiencing a higher burden of having of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal failure (ESRD) (Collins, 2010). ANZDTR reported that at the end of 2014 there were total of 4,306 people being treated for kidney failure: 2,678 people were on dialysis and 1,628 with a transplant: an increase of 4.1 percent for a period of one year (ANZDTR, 2014). The prevalence of dialysis and those that have had a kidney transplant has risen by 250 percent during the last 15 years (Kidney Health New Zealand, 2014). However, the current demand for kidney supply is not meeting the numbers needed as there is currently an excess of 550 patients listed to receive organs and only a 115 have had a transplant from a living or deceased donor in the year 2014 (ANZDTR, 2014).

I have been in the healthcare industry for over 20 years. I am a Registered Nurse, currently certified as a Nephrology nurse, I have worked with different features of the Nephrology, which include, Hemodialysis, Renal Transplantation (Cuba). Most recently (the last 5 years) I have been in the role of Acute Dialysis Nurse, within DaVita Inc. at Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach, providing specialized treatment which include Peritoneal Dialysis; CRRT; and Hemodialysis treatment to hospitalized patients with Renal Failure.

Patients who are diagnosed with acute renal failure go through difficult times dealing with the disease. Their families too experience psychological difficulties, not knowing the degree of suffering their loved ones are going through. Therefore, in order to provide the best of care for the patient, nurses need to be knowledgeable about the problem, and find the best professional way to educate the patient and family so that the patient does not end up into the hospital for re-admission. Family members can best relate to the situation and understand what their loved ones are going through if they are included into the care of the patients. You get a better outcome when you treat patients as a whole. It is critical for nurses and other health care workers to provide patients and their family members with the necessary information in order for them to make informed decisions.