Young adults’ experiences of shared decision-making in advanced kidney care

Background: Chronic kidney disease is an irreversible chronic illness, can progress to kidney failure and is treated with either dialysis, potential kidney transplantation or no treatment. Evidence suggests that over 50% of young adults started haemodialysis as their first kidney failure treatment and less had pre-emptive kidney transplantation despite kidney transplant been a better option and this pattern needs to be explored. There is less literature on their experiences of the decision-making process and its psychosocial impact from their perspective.

Aims and objectives: The study will explore young adults’ lived experiences of being involved in kidney failure treatment decision–making process to examine the essence and meaning of their experience to identify themes and factors that influence or deter their engagement from their perspective and explore its psychosocial impact.

Methodology and methods: This is a qualitative study which will adapt an interpretative phenomenological analysis approach. Semi–structured interviews will be conducted to explore young adults lived experiences of the shared decision-making process from their perspective. Interviews will be digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim.

Sampling: A purposeful sampling will be used to identify twenty young adults with chronic kidney disease aged 18 to 30 years through social media networks and interviewed.

Outcomes: The study will provide an understanding of young adults’ experiences of being in the decision-making process and its psychosocial impact. It will allow clinicians to understand issues that matters to young adults and offer support to alleviate them.