Machines Avaiailable for Home Hemo

[Anonymous]

Would appreciate if someone would provide a listing of the machines that are currently available for home hemo/nocturnal and their contact #'s. Also, a brief description/comparison of the pro's and con's of each machine would be helpful.

[Anonymous]

Hi Josh,
My husband is on a Frecineous 2008H. We do nocturnal 6 nights a week.
We do it together as he has a frozen right shoulder and his fistula is in his upper left arm.
It is a lot of work but well worth it. He feels so much better and his labs are great! You need a good water supply and have to put in a "mixer" to mix hot and cold water as well as a pressure guage. We also had to put in 2-seperate plugs one for the machine and one for the RO.
We also have a water softner and carbon tank. Our electric went up $60 a month and water use is about 300 gals a day.
The machine is pretty easy to learn. You just have to know what to look for and what the problem is when it alarms. We are hooked up to the internet and an observer watches us. If we have a problem or she sees something while we sleep, she calls us/ or me them.
I think for me the toughest part is the cleaning of both machines.
The monthly cleanin of the RO with acid/base/and min care is an all day project. We usually do it on Sat. It is not hard just time consuming.
We do this together and what a difference it has made in him, he can eat pretty much as he wants and have fluid within reason because what he drinks that day is taken off that night.
Pat C

[Dori Schatell]

Hi Josh,

On this site, at http://www.homedialysis.org/v1/equip..._mach_01.shtml, you can see an on-line "catalog" of home hemo equipment, including pictures, how much space they take up in your home, and some of their features. Check it out!

[Anonymous]

I am new to all this dialysis stuff! So I am wonder how you go about getting a home unit? My Aunt has to drive 100 miles 1 way 3 times a week so the travel is really getting to her. :cry: Any help or info would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks :lol:

[Dori Schatell]

A good first step would be to use our database ("Find a Center") and see what's available within 150 miles or so of your aunt's home. Once she trains for a home treatment, she only needs to go to the clinic about once a month--in her case, this would save about 2,200 miles of driving each month!

If there is a clinic within driving distance for training and once/mo. visits, your aunt will need to talk to her doctor to see if there is any physical reason why she couldn't do some form of home dialysis (e.g., sometimes abdominal surgeries make PD impossible). Does she have a partner who could train with her if she decided to do home hemo? Many programs require this.

She may need to change doctors. She'll need to see if her insurance will cover another clinic, too. These are some preliminary things to think about...

[Anonymous]

Domestic Engineer, 1st you need decided is your aunt interested in PD or Home Hemo? Then you have to FIND A CENTER WITH A HOME PROGRAM FOR PD OR HOME HEMO which ever you decided. Then you contact them to see if you can GET INTO THEIR PROGRAM. Then depending on the machines
the CENTER uses will be THE MACHINE OR MACHINES you have the option to choose from. The center will supply your Aunt with all the equipment she will need to do dialysis at home. You can't just go out on your own and get machines.

[Debby]

Another consideration is the distance from your home to the sponsoring clinic. This comes into play when you have a lengthy service problem, power outages, or weather problems. If this happens, you will have to travel to the clinic for emergency back-up dialysis. Transportation also is a consideration. Long drives may not be possible for all patients.

[Anonymous]

In an lengthly service situation or power outage, I think you could get into a center close to home without going through the center where your in the program. The center can call and make arrangements for a center close to you to let you in.