Table 4.
Participants’ practice on dialysis vascular access cannulation and management (N = 197).
| Question response | Full cohort | Government | Private | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | ||
| 1. I do assessment of vascular access and surrounding area: | ||||
| Prior to every cannulation | 192 (97.5%) | 156 (98.1%) | 36 (94.7%) | 0.250 |
| 2. My preferred cannulation technique for existing AVF is: | ||||
| Rope-ladder | 128 (65.0%) | 102 (64.4%) | 26 (68.4%) | 0.930 |
| Buttonhole | 36 (18.3%) | 30 (18.8%) | 6 (15.7%) | |
| Area | 29 (14.7%) | 24 (15.0%) | 5 (13.1%) | |
| 3. My preferred cannulation technique for existing AVG is: | ||||
| Rope-ladder | 136 (69.0%) | 111 (69.9%) | 25 (65.7%) | 0.670 |
| Buttonhole | 38 (19.3%) | 31 (19.6%) | 7 (18.6%) | |
| Area | 23 (11.7%) | 17 (10.5%) | 6 (15.7%) | |
| 4. I do cannulation planning for new AVGs and newly matured AVFs: | ||||
| Always | 128 (65.0%) | 98 (61.6%) | 30 (78.9%) | 0.060 |
| Occasional | 62 (31.5%) | 56 (35.2%) | 6 (15.8%) | |
| Never | 7 (3.5%) | 5 (3.2%) | 2 (5.3%) | |
| 5. Did physicians (vascular surgeon/nephrologist) assist with cannulation (if applicable)? | ||||
| Vascular surgeon | 47 (23.8%) | 31 (19.5%) | 16 (42.1%) | 0.002** |
| Nephrologist | 59 (29.9%) | 48 (30.2%) | 11 (28.9%) | |
| NO | 86 (43.6%) | 76 (47.8%) | 10 (26.5%) | |
| No physician | 5 (2.4%) | 4 (2.5.0%) | 1 (2.6%) | |
| 6. I understand vascular maintenance and evaluation. I suspect abnormalities and refer patients to the doctors/hospital nurse specialist when (select all applicable): | ||||
| Access flow < 600 mL/min | 58 (29.0%) | 47 (30.0%) | 11 (28.0%) | 0.940 |
| Kt/v < 1.4 | 67 (34.0%) | 60 (38.0%) | 7 (18.0%) | 0.300 |
| Excessive AP/VP value | 116 (58.0%) | 95 (60.0%) | 21 (55.0%) | 0.670 |
| Poor thrill | 187 (95.0%) | 150 (94.0%) | 37 (97.0%) | 0.470 |
| Pulsation | 86 (44.0%) | 76 (48.0%) | 10 (26.0%) | 0.190 |
| Blood clot in the tubing | 121 (61.0%) | 102 (64.0%) | 19 (50.0%) | 0.250 |
| Redness of the HD access | 166 (84.0%) | 134 (84.0%) | 32 (84.0%) | 1 |
| Pain of the ipsilateral hand with HD access | 154 (78.0%) | 126 (79.0%) | 28 (74.0%) | 0.560 |
| 7. I routinely conduct education of the following aspect(s) to dialysis patients (select all applicable): | ||||
| Vascular access terminology | 75 (38.0%) | 57 (36.0%) | 18 (47.0%) | 0.410 |
| Daily essential care | 161 (82.0%) | 128 (80.0%) | 33 (87.0%) | 0.350 |
| Hand exercise | 164 (83.0%) | 129 (81.0%) | 35 (92.0%) | 0.120 |
| Vascular access cleaning before dialysis | 158 (80.0%) | 129 (81.0%) | 29 (76.0%) | 0.540 |
| Complications associated with dialysis access | 168 (85.0%) | 134 (84.0%) | 34 (89.0%) | 0.470 |
| Complications need to seek medical attention | 156 (79.0%) | 125 (79.0%) | 31 (81.0%) | 1 |
| None | 2 (1.0%) | 2 (1.0%) | 0.0% | 1 |
AP = arterial pressure, AVF = arteriovenous fistula, AVG = arteriovenous graft, HD = hemodialysis, VP = venous pressure.
**
P < .01.