How To Manage Kidney Disease In Continuing Care Communities

Older adults living in continuing care communities are susceptible to several illnesses, kidney disease included. This condition compromises their ability to eliminate waste and toxins from the blood. In worst-case scenarios, kidney disease patients may undergo renal dialysis about twice a week to filter their blood and make it safe for circulation throughout the body.

Kidney disease leads to energy loss, poor sleeping patterns, muscle cramps, and more-than-average urination. As a caregiver in a continuing care community, you must learn how to manage patients with kidney disease so life becomes manageable.

Fortunately, this article shares some handy tips for your consideration.

Introduce Light Therapy

Researchers are constantly trying to discover new ways to manage kidney disease. One of the most recent proposals is light therapy. This treatment option involves isolating specific wavelengths of light and shining them onto the affected organs, in this case, the kidneys. Studies on the effectiveness of red light therapy have been carried out on animals and have shown promising results.

Red light therapy is thought to help reduce inflammation and scarring, improve kidney function, and boost antioxidant defense capabilities. You may want to conduct more investigation into these claims and develop a solid conclusion before implementing the same on your patients.

Keep Them Active

Physical activity helps keep blood glucose in check by increasing insulin sensitivity, leading to adequate take up of blood sugar for conversion into energy. Remember, high blood glucose levels damage kidney blood vessels, causing kidney disease. Thus, reducing blood sugar is vital in managing kidney disease.

That said, you’d want to keep the older adults active. It would be best to avoid sitting all day long with minimal movement. Although they might be frail and can’t engage in high-intensity activities like young people, you can introduce mild activities like swimming, aqua aerobics, walking, jogging, lawn tennis, and yoga. Furthermore, you may want to extend these sessions beyond the recommended 30 minutes for better results. After all, they have some free time throughout the day and only exert mild effort.

Develop Healthy Meal Plans

Eating the right kind of food is crucial for kidney disease patients. For one, it helps regulate blood sugar levels, preventing kidney disease. Besides, a proper diet lowers blood pressure, a leading cause of kidney disease.

For these reasons, it’d help to carefully assess your patients' eating and make the necessary changes. Moreover, people with kidney diseases must limit or eliminate food that are rich in potassium, phosphorus, and sodium. Below are some examples:

• Potassium – such as bananas, avocadoes, oranges or orange juices, potatoes and sweer potatoes, spinach, etc.

• Phosphorus – like whole wheat bread, brown rice, and dairy

• Sodium – such as processed, ready-to-eat or instant food. For example, salted, dried, cured, or canned goods, pretzels, crackers, and instant noodles.

After eliminating the wrong foods, see how to introduce the following best foods for people with kidney disease:

• Shiitake mushrooms

• Cranberries

• Turnips

• Pineapple

• Cabbage

• Buckwheat

• Garlic

• Egg whites

• Cauliflower

• Red grapes

• Skinless chicken

The list doesn’t end here, though. It would help to conduct further research and develop healthy meal plans to help mitigate kidney disease symptoms. Otherwise, you can consult your physician or caregiver in charge.

Administer The Right Medicines

Aside from diet, physical activities, and other therapies, medication is also crucial in managing kidney disease. Commonly prescribed drugs for this condition include:

• Isoniazid

• Co-trimoxazole

• Azathioprine

• Prednisolone

• Cyclophosphamide

• Sirolimus

• Ciclosporin

• Mycophenolate

You’d also want to give the patients drugs to control other correlated conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, anemia, and metabolic acidosis.

Chances are their primary physicians have already prescribed some medications. Your role as a caregiver is to ensure the patients take the prescribed amounts at the desired frequency. Remember, chronic kidney disease patients tend to get tired after some time, given that they must take medicines month after month. Try encouraging them and showing them the need to keep up with the doses.

Constantly Monitor Their Kidney Health

Kidney disease may develop from bad to worse if not properly managed. Thus, monitoring your patients’ kidney health is critical. Ensure they frequently undergo blood, urine, and imaging tests. Also, it’d help to remove a sample of kidney tissues once in a while for testing. Keeping up with these tests helps identify issues promptly and take the necessary action before they escalate into advanced stages or lead to kidney failure.

Conclusion

Kidney disease is a common condition among older adults in continuing care communities, and it’s essential to know how to manage it. The tips above introduce you to some basic principles, but it’d help to dig deeper into each suggestion and develop a holistic course of action. Most importantly, note that you’re dealing with aged people who’ve faced a lot in life and maybe adamant about your suggestions. So, stay firm and assertive and be patient with them. Eventually, you’ll reach a common ground of understanding and collaboratively managing their ailments.