Contribution to the Improvement of Healthcare in Nephrology through ICT Intervention: Survey Study to Healthcare Professional
Authors:   Center for Biomedical Technology (CTB), Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Spain, Mata-Lima Abel , Paquete Ana Rita ,   Hospital Divino Espirito Santo (HDES), Renal Division, Ponta Delgada -Açores, Portugal, Serrano-Olmedo Jose Javier ,   Center for Biomedical Technology (CTB), Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Spain
Published: January 2025

Background and Purpose: Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is a common chronic disease usually associated with Cardio
Vascular Disease (CVD), and premature death and millions of people are at increased risk for CKD. As this disease is extremely
complex, Multi-Disciplinary Care (MDC) is needed to provide complete and continuous care. Usually, the nephrology units
need cooperation from several other Health Care Professionals (HCPs) such as cardiologists, nutritionists, obstetricians, and
so forth. All modalities of treatments, Peritoneal Dialysis (PD) and Hemodialysis (HD) require HCPs and patients to develop
a variety of skills to effectively deliver and manage dialysis tasks in the center or at home. Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) interventions can offer tools that provide HCPs and patients with tools that facilitate the management of
kidney patients in centers or at home. ICT interventions can allow to automate registrations, videoconferencing, minimize the
geographic burden and resource cost savings. ICT can be the best way to promote cost saving on health spending and ensure
the sustainability of the health system and, the environment as well. In the Iberian Peninsula, kidney patients consume about
3% of the total cost of healthcare. The cost of kidney transplants and dialysis is around 1.8 billion euros annually, and 75 %
of this amount goes to dialysis treatment.
Objective: This study aimed to evaluate and analyze the opinion of Healthcare Professionals (HCP) in Nephrology units
about the Intervention of ICT in nephrology care and the Clinical benefits results from the use of ICT in Nephrology Services
and dialysis Units in Portugal and Spain. Thus we collected the opinion of Health care professionals concerning the role of
ICT intervention in nephrology. Understanding HCPs' feelings and attitudes is essential to understand if such technologies
are correctly adjusted to the workflow and really bring huge benefits for the clinical practice of nephrology and also what
features need improvement and what should be implemented in the future. ICT intervention has been implemented to promote
better healthcare in nephrology units and improve patient outcomes. In the Survey, we intended to evaluate nephrology HCPs'
opinions concerning the ICT interventions, in nephrology, represented by several tools that allow the HCPs to implement
solutions such as Remote Patient Monitoring(RPM); Remote Monitoring of Treatment (RMT); Tele Home Care; Tele Health
(Tele Nephrology); Home Dialysis; MHealth; Mobile App; Web Portal, Telemedicine, and so forth.
Key Points: In many countries particularly in the Iberian Peninsula (Portugal and Spain) the incidence of CKD is substantially
high. The “treatments” for kidney disease have not improved substantially over the past 50 years, leaving too many kidney
patients with a poor quality of life and reduced life expectancy. This situation is associated with staggering aggregate annual costs amounting to €140 billion per year in Europe, more than the annual healthcare costs of cancer or diabetes [1]. The
increased daily use of information and communication technologies may lead to the need for healthcare professionals to
incorporate technology use competencies into practice