Perspectives on Quality of Care in Kidney Transplantation: A Semistructured Interview Study

BACKGROUND: There is currently no agreement as to what constitutes quality transplant care, and there is a lack of consistency in the approach to assessing transplantation quality. We aimed to ascertain the views of patients, clinicians, and program administrators about quality care for kidney transplant patients. METHODS: Semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted with 20 patients, 17 physicians, and 11 program administrators. Transcripts were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. RESULTS: We identified 8 themes: access to treatment (standardized transplant referral, lengthy transplant evaluation process, lengthy living donor evaluation); accessibility of services (alternative access options, flexible appointment availability, appropriate amount of follow-up, barriers for accessing care); program resources (comprehensive multidisciplinary care, knowledgeable staff, peer support groups, educational resources, patient navigators/ advocates); communication of information (taking time to answer questions, clear communication about treatment, communication tailored to patients, health promotion and illness prevention); attitude of care providers (positive and supportive attitude, patient centered care); health outcomes (freedom from dialysis, Long-term health, short-term health, fear of infections); patient satisfaction (returning to normal life, patient satisfaction with care); and safety (reducing infection risk, quick response to complications, patient health status on the waitlist). CONCLUSIONS: There is a need to move beyond basic clinical outcomes and focus on increasing ease of access, the patient-provider relationship, and outcomes that are most important to the patients.