End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Dialysis Workforce Study in the U.S.

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that in the U.S., dialysis care has struggled with insufficient workforce to meet patient demand. In addressing this gap, the contribution of this study is that it goes beyond nephrologists workforce to include other dialysis workforce such as registered nurses (RNs) and advanced nurse practitioners (ANPs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs)/licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) and dialysis technicians in examining the effect of patient demand on the clinical responsibilities. The study examines historical End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patient population levels and trained workforce levels to make predictions about future workforce levels needed to provide dialysis care for this population in the U.S. Forecasting analysis was first conducted to obtain patient demand and workforce supply estimates for 2030 using available historical data beginning 2008. These forecasted estimates were next used for the workforce scenario analysis to make predictions on the workforce supply in 2030 at the patient level and dialysis center level. The results from this study indicated that in 2030, a shortage of nephrologists and dialysis technicians and surplus of nursing workforce needs to be addressed to meet the estimated increase in dialysis patient demand.