Chronic Kidney Disease clinical trials at UCSF

The goal of this clinical trial is to compare two health system-based approaches for offering kidney failure treatment options to older patients with kidney failure, specifically, to ensure patients are actively involved in a shared decision making (SDM) process covering a full range of treatment choices and have meaningful access to that full range of choices. These include standard in-center or home dialysis as well as alternative treatment plans (ATPs): active medical care without dialysis, time-limited trial of dialysis, palliative dialysis, and deciding not to decide. Approach 1 - Educate and Engage: Nephrology practices encourage their patients to a) participate in a kidney disease education program providing a balanced presentation of all options including ATPs, b) use evidence-based patient decision aids that include ATPs, and c) engage in SDM with staff trained in communication skills and best practices. Approach 2 - Educate and Engage Plus Kidney Supportive Care Program: Nephrology practices add a primary palliative care program to support patients who choose ATPs and their families. The program provides care coordination, symptom management, advance care planning, and psychosocial support to supplement usual care from their nephrologist. To compare the two approaches, the investigators will conduct a repeated, cross-sectional stepped wedge cluster randomized trial involving 20-25 chronic kidney disease clinics at 8 practice organizations around the United States. Aim 1: Compare the effectiveness of Approaches 1 and 2 in a) increasing proportion of patients choosing ATP and b) reducing patient-reported decisional conflict about treatment. Aim 2: Compare the patient and family experience of ATP care between Approaches 1 and 2 in terms of quality of life, services used, and end of life (EOL) experience. Aim 2a will focus on experience while patients are receiving an ATP. Aim 2b will describe the EOL experience. Aim 3: Evaluate implementation of each approach through a mixed-methods design based on the expanded RE-AIM framework. For Aims 1 and 2, researchers will collect information by chart review and surveys with patients and caregivers. For Aim 3, information will be reported by site managers as part of monthly progress reports. Clinic administrators, clinical providers, and staff will complete surveys before and after implementation of each approach.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a silent epidemic affecting more than 37 million Americans. The burden of morbidity and mortality associated with CKD derives from its frequent progression to end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) and the disproportionate risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and associated complications. CKD is strongly and independently associated with CVD, even after adjustment for traditional CVD risk factors. This led to the hypothesis that other risk factors augment the rate of CVD in the setting of CKD. Hence, many patients with progressive renal disease succumb to fatal CVD events before they need renal replacement therapy. The National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) established the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) Study in 2001 with the initial goal of elucidating the relationship between CKD and CVD. Since its inception, the CRIC Study has recruited and followed a racially and ethnically diverse cohort of over 5,000 participants with reduced kidney function from 13 clinical recruitment sites across the US. The original aim of CRIC was to establish a clinical research laboratory designed to (a) identify novel predictors of CKD progression, and (b) characterize the manifestations of CVD and identify its risk factors among individuals with CKD. The CRIC Study has examined a broad set of etiological factors (clinical, behavioral, and biomarker-associated) potentially responsible for both progressive CKD and CKD-related morbidities, especially those early in the course of CKD. Characterizing relationships between these risk factors and outcomes should facilitate identification of high-risk subgroups with CKD and guide enrollment into preventive treatment trials and application of preventive therapies. Over time, the scientific focus and the CRIC investigator network have broadened extensively through a highly successful ancillary studies program that has included more than 100 projects, most of which have been funded through federal grants. To date, the CRIC Study's investigative activities have resulted in over 300 published scientific papers with many additional manuscripts in development.