Objective: The objective was to determine the effect of a patient education intervention on decreasing serum phosphorus levels, increasing calcium levels, and increasing knowledge in hemodialysis patients with abnormally high phosphorus levels (n = 29).
Sample/setting: Study subjects were (a) on hemodialysis at least 3 months, (b) English speaking, (c) mentally alert, (d) not under constant nursing care, and (e) hyperphosphatemic. The study was conducted at two suburban dialysis units in the Chicago Metropolitan area.
Design: This study had a one group, pretest-posttest design, using subjects as their own controls.
Methods: The intervention was a one-on-one education session performed by a nephrology nurse using a teaching booklet, an Osteodystrophy Tool, and a medication diary.
Results: The mean change score for phosphorus did not reach significance (t [28] = .68, p = .50). The change in mean phosphorus levels was not related to gender, education, or dialysis unit. There was a weak relationship between a decrease in phosphorus and an increase in knowledge about phosphorus (r = 0.21). However, calcium levels improved significantly after the teaching intervention (t [28] = 3.23, p = 0.003). Mean overall scores for knowledge about phosphorus control increased significantly also (t [28] = 2.60, p = < 0.01).
Conclusion: The findings of this study demonstrated that an education session can have an effect on patients' knowledge and compliance.