Supportive Management in Patients With End-stage Renal Disease: Local Experience in Hong Kong

We report a retrospective observational study on supportive care services in a local renal center. Seventy-four patients who had opted for supportive management after renal replacement therapy assessments in 2008 were included in the study. They were older with more comorbidities than those who had opted for dialysis. Their reported symptoms on subsequent visits were recorded. Patients and their families had a realistic acceptance of death, as reflected by the high preference for do-not-resuscitate orders on their final admission. This demonstrates the importance of structured multidisciplinary renal replacement therapy assessment with advanced care planning in the management of patients with end-stage renal disease.