Local residents with kidney disease won't have to travel as far for treatment now that the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance is expanding its dialysis services.
According to a news release, the expansion was made possible thanks to support from Ontario Renal Network (ORN) and London Health Sciences Centre's (LHSC) Regional Renal program, as well as endorsement by the Erie St. Clair Local Health Integration Network (ESC LHIN).
The release states that three chairs will be added to the existing satellite service's nine-chair unit at the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance's (CKHA) Chatham site.
The unit currently supports 54 patients, however, there is a waitlist of 11 active patients who must travel for treatment in London and Windsor up to five times a week.
Initially, the expansion will support six of these patients and is expected to support 12 additional patients within the year. Pending minor renovations, the additional chairs are expected to be ready for use by late spring.
"Through our eight satellite dialysis units across southwestern Ontario, the Regional Renal Program at London Health Sciences Centre is ensuring patients can receive this critical treatment closer to home," says Janice McCallum, the regional renal director for LHSC and ORN. "We are pleased to support the expansion of hemodialysis services at Chatham-Kent Health Alliance so that more patients can continue accessing this important resource within their community."
Once the unit is operating at full capacity, the expansion will support an additional 18 dialysis patients.
"This service expansion ensures that Chatham-Kent Health Alliance can meet the current and future needs of our community," says CKHA President and CEO Lori Marshall.
Likewise, CKHA Chief of Staff Dr. Pervez Faruqi says the expansion is in line with the hospital's goals.
"This is an essential step forward in Chatham-Kent Health Alliance's ongoing commitment to providing compassionate, quality care for patients," he says.
CKHA's Patient Advisor Mark Deneau says patients will not have to travel as far with the expansion.
"This is welcome news to patients who have been wait-listed for local care. The ability to receive care closer to home can make treating kidney disease much more manageable," says Deneau.
For more information on the CKHA's services can be found online.