Influence of educational programs on perceived barriers toward living donor kidney exchange programs

Living donor kidney exchange programs (LDKEPs) provide significant advantages toward addressing ABO and crossmatch incompatibility in living donor kidney transplantation, however, they have not yet realized their potential. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of an educational conference on perceived barriers toward living donor kidney transplantation and LDKEPs. Methods. Between 2002 and 2004, a state-wide living donor/living donor kidney exchange program was established by the Ohio Solid Organ Transplant Consortium (OSOTC). Prior to initiating the OSOTC LDKEP, an educational conference was held and its effect on transplant professional attitudes toward LDKEP barriers were assessed prior to and following the conference using a questionnaire. Questions were answered using a Likert scale (LS) (1 = strongly agree, 5 = strongly disagree). Results, Forty-eight participants completed questionnaires prior to and following the conference. The conference was judged to increase understanding of KEPs. The complementary web-based computer matching program was also felt to be an important component for the LDKEP. The conference did not affect the state of decision making regarding KEPs, however. Perceived barriers to LDKEPs not influenced by the educational conference included (1) concerns about donor travel costs, (2) concern about potential medical legal problems, (3) lack of perceived superiority of LDKEPs over desensitization protocols, and (4) concern about donation to strangers. Although numeric trends existed for each of these barriers, none were statistically significantly influenced by the education conference. Conclusions. These results suggest that interventions other than large scale educational conferences will be needed to address the barriers to LDKEP.