KidneyViews
Welcome to the non-profit Medical Education Institute's Home Dialysis Central blogspot! This page is an umbrella under which Home Dialysis Central staff and guests can share their perspectives about home therapies and what we need to do to raise their profile and enable more people to use them. We'd like your comments as well! Bookmark our site and like us on Facebook! Help us tell the world about home dialysis.
Dialysis Patient Needs vs. Social Worker Caseloads
(17 comments)
It has been widely reported that depression increases the risk of hospitalization and death for both in-center and home dialysis patients.
Published on 04/05/2018 by Beth Witten, MSW, ACSW, LSCSW
I WON’T LET KIDNEY DISEASE DEFINE ME OR STOP ME ACHIEVING MY DREAMS
(4 comments)
After 18 months of endless hospitalisations, major surgeries and nightmare health crises, my kidneys failed and I needed dialysis to keep me alive.
Published on 03/29/2018 by Maddy Warren
Tags: Making dialysis better,
About Me: Before, During and After Starting Dialysis
(6 comments)
I woke up from surgery, with the surgeon leaning over me saying “from now on you must treat your arm like it is your lifeline, because it is!” and so my journey began.
Published on 03/22/2018 by Nieltje Gedney
Tags: Making dialysis better,
I Will Not Let This Illness Define Me – Part 2
(6 comments)
Within 2 weeks of running 5 short daily treatments at home, using a much slower pump speed, I started to feel clear headed and energetic and hungry, like I hadn't in years.
Published on 03/15/2018 by Colin Mackay
Tags: Making dialysis better, Education issues: for patients and professionals,
I Will Not Let This Illness Define Me – Part 1
(4 comments)
I hadn't realized that it was possible to feel numb, terrified, and nauseous all within the same heartbeat. But here I was, feeling all three. My GP at least had the good manners to look just as mortified as I felt.
Published on 03/08/2018 by Colin Mackay
Tags: Making dialysis better,
Why Home Hemodialysis?
(0 comments)
Many people ask me why I choose to do home hemodialysis. To me the answer is quite simple.
Published on 03/01/2018 by Kamal Shah
Tags: Making dialysis better,
Pain Management in Home Dialysis
(1 comments)
The authors found that 60%+ of dialysis patients were prescribed one or more opioids each year, and 20% had at least one 90-day prescription each year.
Published on 02/22/2018 by Beth Witten, MSW, ACSW, LSCSW
RPA’s New Position Paper on Increasing Dialysis Options is Music to My Ears—Now We Need a Chorus!
(6 comments)
I can’t help suspecting that if the nephrology leadership like the RPA and the CMOs teamed up with patient advocate groups like Home Dialyzors United and AAKP to approach CMS…we just might get where we need U.S. dialysis to be.
Published on 02/15/2018 by Dori Schatell, MS, Executive Director, Medical Education Institute
Enhancing Shared Decision Making & Avoiding “Hostage Bargaining Syndrome”
(0 comments)
Today, people in healthcare speak of “patient engagement,” “partnership in care,” and “shared decision-making.” A new study has identified a barrier to all of these efforts:
Published on 02/08/2018 by Beth Witten, MSW, ACSW, LSCSW
Tags: Making dialysis better, Education issues: for patients and professionals,
An Australian Home Dialyzor Travels to Thailand: Part 2
(2 comments)
First, I checked places I was travelling to for a hospital, then I looked to see if they had a nephrologist. If they did, there was a good chance that there would be dialysis.
Published on 02/01/2018 by Malcolm Macdonald