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Andrea Kattah, M.D., Nephrology and Hypertension, Mayo Clinic in Rochester: Dialysis is a treatment that tries to help
support a patient whose kidneys are not providing the sort of vital function. There's different ways we can do it, but in essence
what we're doing is kind of hooking a patient up to a machine and having them clean out those waste products and clear fluid out so
that they can continue living their life and hopefully having a good and decent quality of life while we're doing that.
Danielle Gleason, R.N., CNN, Manager, Ambulatory Nursing, Mayo Clinic in Rochester: A lot of times people just think of dialysis as going to a center where someone does this all for you and you have to give up your life and your schedule to accommodate for these appointments and the reality is that's not the case and we have lots of options for you to stay in your own home for as long as possible.
Mary Cormican, Patient, Elmwood, WI: We first knew that we needed to have dialysis. Again, home was really the only place we
wanted to be. I'm so, so fortunate that John (Cormican, Caregiver) is willing to be the care partner that he is, which allows us to do home dialysis.
Ms. Gleason: I think patients are happier at home because they have the flexibility of their dialysis schedule being when it's convenient for them.
Dr. Kattah: And a really important part of why home dialysis is so good for patients is because it's more frequent.
Because you're not having to go just three times a week. They're mimicking more what your kidneys would do in real life, which is they're working every day, all day.
Successful Dialysis at Home
Dr. Kattah: When a patient comes to us and expresses interest in home dialysis, first we kind of show them around, show them the different machines, the different options, how that would best work for their life, and then start talking about how the training process
would work in their schedule, in their life, and that of their care partner too.
Ms. Gleason: We train for as long as necessary, until the patient is comfortable and they're ready to go home. We really emphasize them practicing in the clinic in a safe environment on their own with the nurse supervising until we feel confident and they feel confident in their skills. And then they begin their treatments at home and we are monitoring the treatments during clinic hours and they also have access to vendors after hours if needed.
Dr. Kattah: There's a misconception that you need to have a huge home. You need to have tons of storage space. You need to be able to have a space in your home to store the materials.
Ms. Gleason: If you do have pets in the home, we do ask that pets are kept out of the treatment area. That is the only requirement for pets.
Dr. Kattah: The other thing that comes up a lot is caregivers, a care partner who can help you with your treatments. And some,
for example, peritoneal dialysis is something that you don't really need a care partner. That's something that many people can do by themselves.
Home hemodialysis, there is actually options to learn to do that by yourself. I think a lot of patients opt not to, but we have had patients
who've chosen and felt comfortable doing their treatments on their own. But most patients choose to have someone there because they see how much they benefit.
Ms. Gleason: Dialysis patients are able to travel. Some of our dialysis modalities involve you taking your equipment with you and some of them we assist you with finding a dialysis center at your travel location.
Ms. Cormican: We recently just did a little Midwest jaunt. We went to Mankato for a concert and then we went to Des Moines to work the Savannah Bananas baseball game in Des Moines. So we were able to do that. We were not, you know, stuck to a facility schedule. You know know you have to go. You know we have to be there at the time. We were able to do dialysis when we got home. We were able to do dialysis before we left. Just the flexibility really gives us freedom. It's what really helps keep us, I think, keeps me still active.
Home Dialysis Experience with Mayo Clinic
Ms. Gleason: The thing about Mayo Clinic is that "The needs of the patient come first" is not just a
slogan. What is best for the patient is what we're thinking about all the time. Patients are just happier to be at home.
Patients feel privileged and blessed to get this as an option. With a chronic illness, sometimes you have an overwhelming
amount of medical appointments, and this eliminates having to go into the clinic. So having more of your life back, more free
time is really life-changing for patients. And being able to travel with your dialysis can really add to the satisfaction of your
life and feeling that you are gaining more control over your life.
Ms. Cormican: I'm so grateful for dialysis and I'm so grateful for again the level of care that Mayo gives and our home dialysis team gives us. That's been our experience is the high level of care and that people genuinely want you to be successful. People
genuinely want you to feel better. So that's nice that the reputation that Mayo has is our experience with that level and standard of care.
Dr. Kattah: Patients do better, I think, because we are constantly thinking about how can we be making this better for them. And that's why I think our program has done so well.
Home Dialysis Hubs: Albert Lea, MN; Rochester, MN; Lake City, MN; Onalaska, WI
For more information, please call Mayo Clinic Home Dialysis Department 507-266-3737
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