Factors associated with resilience among patients with end-stage kidney disease receiving hemodialysis in a teaching hospital: a cross-sectional study.

Abstract

Backgrounds: Patients with End-Stage Kidney Disease (ESKD) receiving Hemodialysis (HD) face significant psychosocial and physical challenges. Improving their resilience by integrating protective factors is important for effectively managing the difficulties associated with the disease and its treatment. This study intended to identify factors associated with resilience among patients with ESKD receiving HD.

Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was done among 143 patients with ESKD receiving HD in a Tertiary Hospital "A" in Nepal. A non-probability convenience sampling technique was used to select samples. Data were collected following ethical approval through face-to-face interviews. A Nepali version of socio-demographic and clinical characteristics-related questions and five standardized and structured instruments were used to measure resilience, family support, illness cognition, self-efficacy, and self-esteem. Data were analyzed with descriptive and inferential statistics (i.e., correlation and multiple linear regression) using the Statistical Package for Social Science Software version 16.

Results: The respondents had intermediate (49.0%), low (27.3%), and high (23.7%) levels of resilience. Illness cognition, self-efficacy, and self-esteem had statistically significant positive associations with resilience. However, age was negatively associated with resilience. These associated variables account for 64.0% of the variance in resilience (Adjusted R² = 0.64).

Conclusions: The highest proportion of patients with ESKD receiving HD had an intermediate level of resilience. Factors such as illness cognition, self-efficacy, and self-esteem play an important role in enhancing resilience while advancing age appears to diminish it. Therefore, focusing on enhancing illness cognition, self-efficacy, and self-esteem with special care on older patients may be an effective strategy for improving resilience in patients with ESKD receiving HD.

Trial registration: Not applicable.