I am new to this community and am in dire need of information on purchasing a dialysis machine for home use.
My father recently has been receiving treatments in Italy, however, he has returned home to Ethiopia and is in need of treatment 3 times a week.
I would like to purchase a machine to send him since the hospitals in Ethiopia are currently inadequate.
I’ve been searching the web and have yet to have luck. I would greatly appreciate any information, and/or website links to purchasing a hemodialysis machine for home use.
Wouldn’t the closest easiest route would be to get him on PD first? …then along the way prepare for whether you can get him on something as simple as NxStage System One…
For all people who are new to the world of kidney disease it is always a good idea to go through Kidney School
Gus’s suggestion to investigate PD is a good idea but if you are determined to have your father use hemodialysis or he must use hemodialysis then I would suggest that you contact a unit in Nairobi (there are three listed in the Global Dialysis database).
You’ll need supplies and tech support for any machine you choose. Which machine is not important (a used machine from the '80s could do the job) but you will need to get supplies so I would look to units close to Ethiopia. Maybe if there is a supplier in Kenya you could get support in Ethiopia.
Doing dialysis is a life time commitment of course and there is more to it then just hooking up to a machine - nutrition, medications, emotional support, etc. - your father would be best served by a system of care. Is there any chance he could return to Italy?
His doctor suggested he needs to be going on hemodialysis asap. Flying back and forth to Italy is not an option, however, he does have a full time nurs who will assist his dialysis - therefore, attending a school is not an issue.
PD=Peritoneal Dialysis …a short tube placed in abdomen and used to exchange special dialysate fluid 3-4 times daily…some people use a machine to do it for them at night…without needing a hemodialysis machine…