Grant: DRA : Canada Graduate Research Scholarship - Doctoral Program (CGRS D)

Anxiety symptoms are far too common among people living with kidney failure and receiving dialysis, yet remain ignored. Untreated anxiety symptoms are linked to negative effects, including more hospital stays and poor quality of life. People receiving dialysis have said that their mental health is rarely addressed. In the health care system, patients and clinicians face barriers to receiving and providing mental health care respectively. There are a lot of things we do not know. How does mental health care work to address anxiety symptoms of people receiving dialysis? Why does it help some, but not all people? Who benefits the most? Why does it work better in some conditions? We need to answer these questions to provide equitable and people-centred mental health care for people receiving dialysis. I will develop a theory to explain how and why mental health care works for people receiving dialysis and experiencing anxiety symptoms. I will achieve this aim by (1) looking at literature, (2) studying diverse backgrounds, health and life experiences of people receiving dialysis, and (3) interviewing both health care providers and people who are receiving dialysis and experiencing anxiety. I will then answer how, why, for whom, and in what conditions mental health care works best for people receiving dialysis and experiencing anxiety. Throughout this research process, I will collaborate with a well-established Community Advisory Committee (people who have lived experiences of receiving dialysis) to work towards addressing this problem. The findings will be a theory that helps explain and address a patient-identified gap in care. It will also inform policy makers on how to best support people-centred mental health care for this population.