Transforming Practice to Support Person-Centered Care for Patients With Advanced Kidney Disease

Contemporary patterns of care for patients with advanced kidney disease are far from person-centered. Large changes to health systems, payment structures, quality measurement, patient and provider education, and the culture in which care is delivered will be needed to support a more person-centered approach to care for members of this population. To uphold the essence of who our patients are, efforts are needed throughout the illness trajectory to foster the development of strong patient–provider relationships and extend the reach of these relationships across settings, to educate our patients about their treatment options and what to expect in the future, to offer opportunities for patients to involve their family members and close friends in their care, and ultimately to promote a culture in which providers are flexible, creative, and tireless in working with their colleagues and with their patients and their families to fulfill the mission of person-centered care of finding the “right treatment for the right person at the right time.”