Need To Fire DaVita

Discussions for Patients, Family, and Friends HD For Patients
1

As it currently stands, it has been over three years since DaVita has promised extended treatments on NxStage, in addition to internet monitoring. They claim that it has to be approved by the FDA. Having many years of law experience, I find this claim to be a cop out. First, if this were true, why are the independent chains doing this procedure? Second, you mean to tell me that the DaVita lawyers read regulations differently than many other attorneys, fat chance. Thirdly, internet monitoring has been used in Canada since 1998 and the independent dialysis providers are currently using this system. Does DaVita care about their clients, I do not believe they do. The next time they want something and they choose to hassle me, I will ask, “Where are my extended treatments?” If they would enjoy losing a $100,000 in revenue for the year, go right on ahead. I will never forget, the last summer, I was told the Extended treatments were coming, only to be told two weeks later, “We have no idea.”

Moreover, DaVita tends to try to blame the patient when there is a problem, I do not have time to list all of the examples. We were sold on NXStage by being told that we could travel with the machine. However, they are trying to limit our vacations to three weeks or only three weeks of bags for the year. They say that they are doing this because NXStage is charging $25 per box of bagged fluid. Yet, that is not what we were told in the beginning. Now, they want us to fill out a sheet when we use bags, I told them, No, I would not do it, end of the story. DaVita just keeps pushing paperwork and other tasks on us, when they should be performed by the Nursing staff. Apparently, DaVita has not learned how to say No to NXStage. DaVita is great for punishing patients when they do not do what DaVita wants. Yet, when the shoe is on the other foot, not a word is said, Oh, the Hypocrisy!

I did take a trip to Liberty Dialysis, I was very impressed, unless there is something that I am unware of, if you know, please post it. Liberty Dialysis even has a water drinking fountain, unlike the control freaks at Fresenius or DaVita. They seem to be very laid back, not intent in controlling everything and everyone. All of the supplies are shipped to the consumer’s home, so they do not have to keep running back and forth from the clinic, unlike DaVita. In addition, they receive one shot per month at the clinic, so they do not have to run back forth to the clinic, for red blood cells, it is made by the same company that makes Epo. Liberty Dialysis seems to be very consumer focused, unlike Davita or Fresenius. I hope they run DaVita and Fresenius into the ground. Just remember, there was a company that started in Arkansas in the early 1960’s. The company’s name? WAL-MART.

Always remember, you are paying the bill, either thru taxes or insurance premiums. You are paying the bill, the payor calls the shots. Do not let anyone think that they are in charge of your life, you are! One nurse at DaVita told someone on the phone, “We can not make these patients do anything.” I thought, "You better %%TR^* never forget that statement, either.

2

I am currently with Davita. As soon as I make the decision and figure out sleeping arrangements while I do nocturnal, I will most likely leave Davita and switch to Northwest Kidney. I have been waiting either for NW Kidney to start using the pureflow with the NxStage or for Davita to get their “FDA approval”. Looks like NW Kidney won. They just recently began using the pureflow. I’ve never been hassled about the bags as Davita said may be possible. As a matter of fact, my last trip to Denver in April, NxStage sent me 5 extra boxes of dialysate ‘just in case’ - which I had to trash the day I left. They didn’t seem too worried about ‘rationing’ then and it bothered me that I was the one paying for the unneccesary extra boxes. I think the bag allotment at Davita is ridiculous since NW Kidney only used bags until the recent inclusion of the pureflow. I will go where I can get the service I want and deserve. Looks as though that will be NW Kidney soon.

3

Yes, I would agree. I was told that many patients want to leave DaVita for Liberty Dialysis. If there is one thing DaVita excells at, it is being silly and stupid. You should go where you can get the service that you want and deserve. You are paying the bill, it is your money and life. DaVita should advise, not start acting like a dictatorship.

4

When I read the first post of Davita limiting bagged fluid something clicked…

I have watched my DH’s reserve supply of bagged fluid dwindle away this year. At first I though it was due to my own screw up of not calling the automated inventory system on time. (Nx Stage sent me three different schedules at the beginning of the new year, had to re write my calendar of reminders, messy!)

Today the control unit tripped a UV light alarm when I tried to drain a used SAK, Nx Stage tech agreed something was wrong and will send out a new unit, PAK, and 3 days bagged fluid.
It will be Friday or Saturday by the time the control unit arrives.
Our center policy is water cultures must be drawn and cleared before using a new unit. Can’t send labs on weekends, central lab based in Florida. Will fed ex cultures on Monday, takes about a week for results.

Only have 9 boxes on hand (3 treatments), NxStage is sending 9 boxes (3 treatments).
Predicting time line of when unit will be cleared… possibly 9 more treatments if dh takes another day off.
I freaked, we will be short on boxes.

Called NxStage, asked what is going on with reserve supply. We’ve always had two weeks of reserve, support says no we only do ONE week of reserve. News to me, I want two weeks on hand! She replies that due to my request she will be contacting my center, what??

Get a call from Davita nurse, he goes on and on about how bags are only to be used in emergency. If you are too lazy to make batch, forget to make batch or have a planned day off and decide to use bags instead of wasting part of batch… these are reasons NOT to use bags.
He then went on to talk about the expense about shipping, said the center could be considered a small business (NOT buying that one!) and they must be careful of high over head.

I tried to point out that if a policy changes, they should let US know! He just talked over me and gave up more reasons… blah blah blah… not getting the point that it was his error for not communicating expectations.

I can understand OP being frustrated and waiting a change, unfortunately there is no choice for our area. All we have is Davita and Fresenius for home hemo. (Fresenius uses the Baby K machine, it will not fit in our current 750 sq foot apt with 4 people. Our building owner would not permit major plumbing changes. )

5

Guest,
I had the identical experience this month. My clinic and NxS could not get on the same page which caused me to feel very insecure that I did not have enough back-up hanging bags. I felt the whole thing was handled very unprofessionally by both. There have been changes that require a new way of ordering the back-up bags, but that does not dismiss the unprofessional way this was communicated to me which left me short of bags for weeks. Because both NxS and my nurse dropped the ball, it put the onus on me to make call after call to find out what was going on. Very unprofessional. Both parties should of well understood the duress a patient is under if supplies are short, not to mention, the position we were put in to be the ambassador between the two doing their job for them. I especially disrespected the manner in which I was spoken to and the lack of compassion in causing me to bear the concern that I cold run out of back-up bags. This is not the first time I have experienced something like this with the co., and although they have improved their service in a number of ways that I very much appreciate, this scenario caused me great stress and is the type of thing I look at should competition occur in the future. My clinic acted just as unprofessionally and the same goes for them. I do not appreciate when either the co. or the clinic lie and scam patients. I understand that both can have issues with the other, but the patient should never have to bear the brunt of their problems. Honesty is the best policy. Both will lie to the customer at the drop of a hat if it suits their purposes. As far as I’m concerned, this is the worst thing about being under their care- their issues become our issues and I wish they would develop some integrity and realize how dysfunctional and unethical this is. Home patients are now discussing if it is possible to do away with the middle men as the system is currently set up since it is always a strain to be victimized in this way.

6

Many years ago, in Montana, I think, there was a patient-owned or patient-run Medicare certified dialysis clinic. With the regulations to have a Medical Director, nurse, social worker, and dietitian on staff, I’m not sure how this would work. And there are geographical issues (would you have a patient-owned clinic everywhere? If not, where?), but it HAS been done.

7

Hadn’t heard of this one, but didn’t a home patient by the name of George become his own Medicare provider?

8

Yes, George Harper did that. I believe that he’s still around, though he’s had a transplant. I’d bet some Googling might find him, or in the past he may have written about how he did it. But do keep in mind that the regulations have changed, and the ones he was able to operate under may no longer be there.

9

Dori,
That is very interesting. I hope someone has more details on that patient-run clinic. I am very interested in doing something similar with home dialysis because I see little need for the clinic as it is set up now.

10

Once you are trained, home, and confident about what you’re doing, that probably does seem like the case. And if you don’t run into any snags, I could see doing something similar. But the Medicare regs about having the various members of the care team are more relevant when you’re new, or if you have a problem of some sort, especially a complex one.

I think there might have been an article about that patient-run clinic (probably how I learned about it), but it was easily 15+ years ago. If it wasn’t in an index medicus (peer reviewed) publication, it’ll be next to impossible to find. I’m STILL looking for one I saw at about the same time that had a terrific illustration of what happens inside a fistula when you flip the needles… One of the trade magazines went out of business since then, and another we’d have to look through issue by issue to try to find it.

11

[QUOTE=Jane;19668]Guest,
I had the identical experience this month. My clinic and NxS could not get on the same page which caused me to feel very insecure that I did not have enough back-up hanging bags. I felt the whole thing was handled very unprofessionally by both. There have been changes that require a new way of ordering the back-up bags, but that does not dismiss the unprofessional way this was communicated to me which left me short of bags for weeks. Because both NxS and my nurse dropped the ball, it put the onus on me to make call after call to find out what was going on. Very unprofessional. Both parties should of well understood the duress a patient is under if supplies are short, not to mention, the position we were put in to be the ambassador between the two doing their job for them. I especially disrespected the manner in which I was spoken to and the lack of compassion in causing me to bear the concern that I cold run out of back-up bags. This is not the first time I have experienced something like this with the co., and although they have improved their service in a number of ways that I very much appreciate, this scenario caused me great stress and is the type of thing I look at should competition occur in the future. My clinic acted just as unprofessionally and the same goes for them. I do not appreciate when either the co. or the clinic lie and scam patients. I understand that both can have issues with the other, but the patient should never have to bear the brunt of their problems. Honesty is the best policy. Both will lie to the customer at the drop of a hat if it suits their purposes. As far as I’m concerned, this is the worst thing about being under their care- their issues become our issues and I wish they would develop some integrity and realize how dysfunctional and unethical this is. Home patients are now discussing if it is possible to do away with the middle men as the system is currently set up since it is always a strain to be victimized in this way.[/QUOTE]

Wish they would have talked to me that way instead of you, they would have learned the hard way.