Home Dialysis Central update
[Vol.4, No.11, November 21, 2007]
Happy Thanksgiving! At the Medical Education Institute, we're thankful that there are home dialysis options that can put folks back in the drivers seat of their lives. Learn more with our NEW DVD! Order your copy today! And get your FREE postcard handouts to tell fellow dialyzors and professionals.
Draft Conditions for Coverage would require home treatment education
The words "home dialysis" appear 56 times in the CMS Draft Conditions for Coverage, which is the basis for granting Medicare certification to dialysis clinics. And, patients would have the right to receive education about all treatment options—and where to get them. It's not final yet, but this is a good sign!
American Society of Nephrology meeting includes home dialysis
At last month's ASN meeting in San Francisco, there were 26 abstracts on home HD—and 250 on PD! Topics from successful pregnancy on nocturnal home HD to a comparison of mortality between CAPD and APD (APD won) were covered. Register free and search the abstracts for your favorite topic!
ESAs save lives and dollars in CKD
Erythrocyte-stimulating agents like EPOGEN, Procrit, and Aranesp have gotten a bad rap lately. A new study looked back at data from 8,188 patients ages 15 or over with CKD and anemia who were enrolled in health plans. The findings: the 14.6% who received ESAs were less likely to be hospitalized or go to the ER, took longer to reach dialysis, were less likely to die in the hospital—and their care cost less, too. Read the abstract.
CCPD helps Mary feel normal
A lot can happen in just one year! In March 2005, Mary Karon Lewis was 61 years old, happily settled with her husband in their retirement dream home in the Smoky Mountains of North Carolina, working part-time in a local hospital lab, and living the good life. One year later, in March 2006, she was training to do home dialysis. Read her story.
Topic of the month: how and why dialysis works - part 1
Dr. John Agar, a nephrologist from Australia who runs the www.nocturnaldialysis.org website, guest-authored this month's article about dialysis solute removal. Read more.
How does Medicare pay for home hemodialysis training?
Click here to learn the answers to this & other questions about Medicare payment for PD and home hemo.
Read all about it!
Review home dialysis-related news, courtesy of Nephrology News & Issues. This week's stories include:
- New anemia measure predicts risk of death in dialysis patients
- Study in KI looks at effect of epoetin dose on hematocrit
- Amgen updates ESA package inserts
- Mircera approved by the FDA
Featured link: NEW DaVita diet helper
If you know your diet prescription—for any type of dialysis—this new online tool can help you plan meals for a day (or a week), find recipes, check your nutrition levels, and even print out your information to share with your dietitian! And, it's free (what do you have to lose?)! Check it out!
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