Many patients who are vulnerable to COVID-19, including those with kidney disease, would especially benefit from initiatives to integrate home self-management into existing health care programs. In addition, many patients reattend clinic for repeat kidney function tests if their clinic test result is abnormal or unexpected, or following drug changes. Although virtual reviews enable many aspects of patient care to be managed remotely, patients must often still attend a clinic for kidney function tests, negating many benefits of virtual clinics. Approximately 10% of our patients continue to prefer virtual clinic review, especially those living in rural areas. Many clinical teams, including our Renal Service, set up virtual clinics to enable the majority of vulnerable patients to be reviewed remotely during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic highlights additional circumstances where self-testing kidney function at home would benefit many patients with long-term health conditions, who frequently require assessment of their kidney function yet are extremely vulnerable to adverse outcomes if they develop COVID-19. 4 This national, system-wide initiative aims to develop and accelerate models of health that give patients greater control of their care, recognizing that many patients can develop expertise in managing their own health conditions. Patient use of hand-held technology for home self-testing of kidney function would also align with the National Health Service Long Term Plan. Home self-testing could also facilitate personalized care pathways, empowering patients to organize health care monitoring around their daily activities. Reducing clinic attendance or hospital stay for monitoring of kidney function is an attractive value proposition for health care services. 2, 3Įnabling patients to self-test kidney function at home could reduce their need to attend health care facilities. Unnecessary clinic visits impact negatively on patient experience and health care resources. Patients are required to attend health care clinics for such tests when they have no other need to see a health care professional. 1 Regular potassium and creatinine tests are essential for many people with long-term health conditions such as heart failure, diabetes mellitus, and chronic kidney disease, to ensure safe monitoring and optimal treatment of their condition. Kidney function tests are among the most commonly ordered health care tests.
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