Variation in kidney transplant referral across chronic kidney disease programs in Ontario, Canada

Background — Eligible patients with kidney failure should have equal access to kidney transplantation. Transplant referral is the first crucial step toward receiving a kidney transplant; however, studies suggest substantial variation in the rate of kidney transplant referral across regions. The province of Ontario, Canada, has a public, single-payer healthcare system with 27 regional chronic kidney disease (CKD) programs. The probability of being referred for kidney transplant may not be equal across CKD programs.

Objective — To determine whether there is variability in kidney transplant referral rates across Ontario’s CKD programs.

Design — Population-based cohort study using linked administrative healthcare databases from January 1, 2013, to November 1, 2016.

Setting — Twenty-seven regional CKD programs in the province of Ontario, Canada.

Patients — Patients approaching the need for dialysis (advanced CKD) and patients receiving maintenance dialysis (maximum follow-up: November 1, 2017).

Measurements — Kidney transplant referral.

Methods — We calculated the 1-year unadjusted cumulative probability of kidney transplant referral for Ontario’s 27 CKD programs using the complement of Kaplan-Meier estimator. We calculated standardized referral ratios (SRRs) for each CKD program, using expected referrals from a 2-staged Cox proportional hazards model, adjusting for patient characteristics in the first stage. Standardized referral ratios with a value less than 1 were below the provincial average (maximum possible follow-up of 4 years 10 months). In an additional analysis, we grouped CKD programs according to 5 geographic regions.

Results — Among 8641 patients with advanced CKD, the 1-year cumulative probability of kidney transplant referral ranged from 0.9% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.2%-3.7%) to 21.0% (95% CI: 17.5%-25.2%) across the 27 CKD programs. The adjusted SRR ranged from 0.2 (95% CI: 0.1-0.4) to 4.2 (95% CI: 2.1-7.5). Among 6852 patients receiving maintenance dialysis, the 1-year cumulative probability of transplant referral ranged from 6.4% (95% CI: 4.0%-10.2%) to 34.5% (95% CI: 29.5%-40.1%) across CKD programs. The adjusted SRR ranged from 0.2 (95% CI: 0.1-0.3) to 1.8 (95% CI: 1.6-2.1). When we grouped CKD programs according to geographic region, we found that patients residing in Northern regions had a substantially lower 1-year cumulative probability of transplant referral.

Limitations — Our cumulative probability estimates only captured referrals within the first year of advanced CKD or maintenance dialysis initiation.

Conclusions — There is marked variability in the probability of kidney transplant referral across CKD programs operating in a publicly funded healthcare system.