Role of Patient Activation in Kidney Health

The National Kidney Foundation and Phreesia partnered on a survey of 4445 patients with diabetes and/or hypertension, two common risk factors for chronic kidney disease (CKD). They discovered that two-thirds of these high-risk patients were unaware of their CKD risk, but that patient-provider conversations and patient activation play a key role in detection and prevention.

The survey was administered digitally through Phreesia’s patient check-in platform and used the Patient Activation Measure (PAM) to assess survey respondents’ knowledge, skills, and confidence in managing their health. Results were reported in the American Journal of Accountable Care.

Patient activation and the frequency of patient-provider conversations were identified as the two most powerful factors in predicting whether patients adopted preventive behaviors to preserve their kidney health. Highly activated patients were much more likely to have discussed kidney health with their providers.

Nephrology Times spoke with Hilary Hatch, PhD, chief clinical officer at Phreesia, about the survey’s findings.