| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4255824 | Transplantation Proceedings | 2015 | 6 Pages |
•There was a widespread negative attitude toward kidney donation among participants.•Modifiable social factors and prior blood donation experiences predict caregiver willingness to donate a kidney.•Caregiver level of knowledge of kidney transplantation correlated with their readiness to donate a kidney.
BackgroundKidney transplantation (KT) is now the preferred renal replacement therapy in suitable patients with end-stage renal disease but organ availability is a major limiting factor.AimsTo evaluate the willingness of caregivers (CGs) and healthcare workers (HWs) to donate a kidney and possible motivating factors in our setting.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was done at Mother and Child Hospital, Kidney Care Centre Ondo and Babcock University Teaching Hospital, all in Southern Nigeria. Participants' willingness to donate a kidney was assessed using Likert and Visual Analogue Scales (VAS). The data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Student t test was used to compare weighted mean scores. Multivariate analysis done; P < .05 was taken as significant.ResultsA total of 563 CGs and HWs took part in the study. Sixty percent of them were aware of kidney donation (KD) but only 43.7% had a favorable attitude towards it, and these were predominantly HWs (63.4% vs 33.1%, P < .001). A quarter of the participants were adequately willing to donate a kidney; HWs were significantly more willing than CGs (45.4% vs 15.8%, P < .001). On VAS, the mean willingness score of HWs was higher than that of CGs (t = 7.13, P < .001). Factors strongly influencing the willingness of CGs to donate include their educational level (P = .028, OR = 4.86, 95% CI: 1.19–19.91) social class (P = .012, OR = 6.17 95% CI: 1.5–24.8) and having a relative with kidney disease (P = .019; OR = 3.07 95% CI: 1.25–12.00). Willingness correlated with awareness of KD among CGs (r = 0.534, P < .001).ConclusionThere is a low level of willingness alongside negative attitudes toward kidney donation among our participants.
