Putting Patients at the CENTER of Kidney Care

Happy World Kidney Day!

Patients with kidney disease often don’t understand kidney disease, don’t have the support they need to obtain care, and aren’t prepared to make important treatment decisions. PREPARE NOW is a study to understand how we can improve the kinds of healthcare people with chronic kidney disease receive. This study is working with Geisinger Health System in Danville, PA, to study exciting new ways to help patients receive the best possible care for their kidney disease that can be employed in health systems across the US. "Our study is special, because we have patients with kidney disease and family members of patients with kidney disease on our study team," says L. Ebony Boulware, MD, Chief of the Division of General Internal Medicine at Duke University and one of the Lead Investigators on the PREPARE NOW study. "We think this will help our study be as effective as possible."

Patients, doctors, and researchers have known for some time that kidney care can be improved,  but haven’t necessarily studied how to improve it through comprehensive strategies that address patients' educational, emotional, support, and medical needs. "We are excited to have this opportunity to see whether new approaches that change both health system technology and health system teams can make a difference," says Boulware. "We hope to find that comprehensive care providing patients with the kinds of support they need can help patients better understand kidney disease and make better treatment decisions that are in line with their personal values."

PREPARE NOW is excited to join the many patients, families, health care providers, and public supporters to help fight kidney disease!

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