Analysis of Linguistically and Culturally Tailored Initiatives in Websites of Kidney Transplant Programs in the United States Between 2013-2018

Abstract

Introduction:

Minority patients constitute the majority of the kidney transplant waiting list, yet they suffer greater difficulties in listing and longer wait times to transplantation. There is a lack of information regarding targeted efforts by transplant centers to improve transplant care for minority populations.

Research Question:

Our aim was to analyze all kidney transplant websites in the United States to identify changes over a 5-year period in the number of multilingual websites, reported culturally targeted initiatives, and center and provider diversity.

Design:

Surveys were developed to analyze center websites of all transplant programs in the United States. Those with incomplete information about their nephrology or surgical teams were excluded, resulting in 174 (73%) sites in 2013 and 185 (76%) in 2018. Results: Few websites were available in a language other than English, 6.3% in 2013 and 9.7% in 2018 (P = 0.24). Only 3 websites (1.3%) in 2013 and 7 (3.7%) in 2018 reported any evidence of a culturally targeted initiative (P = 0.23). In 2018, 35% of centers employed a Hispanic transplant physician, 77% had a transplant physician who spoke a language other than English, and 39% had a transplant physician who spoke Spanish.

Discussion:

Although minority patients are expected to grow in the United States, decreased access to transplantation continues to vex the transplant community. Very little progress has been made in the development of multilingual websites and culturally targeted initiatives.