Vertically Integrated Project
Medical Technologies: Dialysis Design and Patient Perspectives
Goals
Explore patient perspectives about their life-sustaining medical technologies, specifically dialysis. Organize and analyze original qualitative data collected in 2024 from a collaboration with Rochester Regional Health. Around the world, dialysis patients who opt for at-home dialysis often have better outcomes. Yet, in the United States, and Rochester specifically, most patients choose in-center dialysis. We will explore the factors that influence this modality choice. We aim to connect these findings to dialysis design and conduct research on dialysis technologies to consider improvements for home and center dialysis. The project will produce original research to be published in a peer-reviewed journal in addition to exploration of improving dialysis design.
Issues Involved or Addressed
Our ongoing project is the creation of knowledge about dialysis to be incorporated into dialysis design, from the technology to the infrastructure to improve patient outcomes. Questions around health inequities, Rochester-specific analysis, device design, and patient satisfaction will also be addressed.
Methods and Technologies
The project will employ qualitative and ethnographic methodologies guided by human-centered design principles. We will conduct product research about dialysis machines, the delivery services for home dialysis, and consult with design/engineering experts on these technologies.