Association Between Transportation Strategies and Kidney Transplant Center Staff Perceived Racial Disparities.
Department of Surgery, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
Meeting: 2017 American Transplant Congress
Abstract number: C78
Keywords: Kidney transplantation, Multivariate analysis, Waiting lists
Session Information
Session Name: Poster Session C: Disparity in Access and Outcomes for Solid Organ Transplantation
Session Type: Poster Session
Date: Monday, May 1, 2017
Session Time: 6:00pm-7:00pm
Presentation Time: 6:00pm-7:00pm
Location: Hall D1
Background: Racial disparities exist in access to the transplant evaluation process. One contributing factor for this disparity is travel barriers. Transplant center policies to assist patients with transportation could help reduce disparities. We aimed to explore the association between travel strategies adopted by transplant centers and staff-perceived transplantation racial disparities.
Methods: In 2016, a 54-item survey measuring perceived barriers to transplantation was completed by Southeastern transplant center staff (N=74). Our primary exposure variable was a transportation index, computed from 6 individual travel strategies. The outcome variable measured staff perceptions of facility level racial disparities using a 10-point index. A multivariable linear regression was conducted to determine associations.
Results: The average number of transportation resources offered by centers was 2.25 (R=5). Sixty percent of the sample scored ≥ 5 on the disparities index suggesting greater perceptions of disparities (x̅=4.68, s=2.28). Adjusted regression analyses indicated that travel resources were not associated with staff perceptions of their center's racial disparities (β = -0.276, 95%CI [-0.642, 0.090]); findings revealed that staff who identified as white perceived a lower racial disparity in the center by 1.20 (β = -1.203, 95%CI [-2.439, 0.032]), but results were not significant.
Conclusion: Transplant centers should increase travel resources in order to reduce this barrier. More focus should be placed on educating staff about kidney transplant disparities, particularly at centers that serve diverse patient populations.
| Low Perception of Racial Disparities | Moderate Perception of Racial Disparities | High Perception of Racial Disparities | |
| N = 21 | N = 35 | N = 14 | |
| Race
White Person of Color |
81.0%
19.0% |
65.7%
34.3% |
57.1%
42.9% |
| Gender
Male Female |
5.0%
95.0% |
20.6%
79.4% |
14.3%
85.7% |
| Position Title
Social Worker Nurse Transplant Coord. |
9.5%
9.5% 19.0% |
11.4%
14.3% 17.1% |
14.3%
7.1% 21.4% |
| Employment Length
< 1 year 1-3 years 4-7 years 8-10 years > 10 years |
23.8%
42.9% 4.8% 14.3% 14.3% |
8.6%
34.3% 22.9% 5.7% 28.6% |
28.6%
35.7% 14.3% 7.1% 14.3% |
| Transportation Index
0 resources 1 resource 2 resources 3 resources 4 resources 5 resources |
14.3%
9.5% 28.6% 14.3% 23.8% 9.5% |
8.6%
25.7% 22.9% 22.9% 5.7% 14.3% |
28.6%
14.3% 14.3% 28.6% 14.3% 0% |
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CITATION INFORMATION: Lipford K, McPherson L, Hamoda R, Patzer R. Association Between Transportation Strategies and Kidney Transplant Center Staff Perceived Racial Disparities. Am J Transplant. 2017;17 (suppl 3).
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
Lipford K, McPherson L, Hamoda R, Patzer R. Association Between Transportation Strategies and Kidney Transplant Center Staff Perceived Racial Disparities. [abstract]. Am J Transplant. 2017; 17 (suppl 3). https://atcmeetingabstracts.com/abstract/association-between-transportation-strategies-and-kidney-transplant-center-staff-perceived-racial-disparities/. Accessed June 14, 2025.« Back to 2017 American Transplant Congress