How do they define your time at dialysis (read for clarification)

[nkviking75]

This may seem like a weird question, but how does your center define your "time" for dialysis?  It seems to be variable at my center.  Some nurses seem to think when my time arrives I should have my needles in and blood flowing through the machine.  Others seem to define it as when I park my tushie in the chair.  Some nurses take a hard line, others are more relaxed.  The hardliners are quick to penalize me a few minutes of dialysis for the slightest infraction.  Others are much more laid back.  To make it worse, every clock in the center is different, but they are all about 4-6 minutes fast.  Am I making sense?  What's your experience?

[kitkatz]

The machine counts time for us at our center.  From the time your blood hits the lines.  All the clocks are off at our center, too.  I think it is a dialysis center way of making us nuts.

[geoffcamp]

I think I understand your question, In my center my appointment is for 5:30 PM.  If I get in earlier which I do most of the time everyone is happy.  If I am late unless it is really late like 6:30 PM then I am put on the machine and run the FULL amount of time.  If you are minutes late and the techs are taking time off your treatment you must compain!!!!  This is not right.  It is not only fluid loss that dialysis treats, the time on the machine is set for a reason.  Talk to your doctor and explain what the techs are doing by penalizing you by taking minutes off your treatment.  They ARE NOT doctors they have no right to change the orders given to them by the doc's!!!!  It sounds like you are a compliant patient so they should not be such hard asses!  Things are going to happen and you will be late form time to time so they must learn to deal with those facts and make sure to run you for your entire treatment.  I hope this is what you were asking.
Geoff

[nkviking75]

The machine counts time for us at our center.  From the time your blood hits the lines.  All the clocks are off at our center, too.  I think it is a dialysis center way of making us nuts.

Our machines count out our time as well.  If they deem me to be sufficiently late, they set the timer for something less than my full four hours.  When this happens, I'm frequently back out in the parking lot several minutes earlier than I would have been if I had been on "time".

[Rerun]

My appointment time is 9:00 AM with an "on" time of 9:15.  That means in a perfect world the blood should be flowing out the aterial line at 9:15.  I'm always a few minutes early.  What makes me mad is when they try to rush me when I'm early like they think they have been waiting on me to get there or something.

[kitkatz]

RANT!

To My Dialysis Tech or Nurse:

Do NOT rush me when you, as a tech, are running late. It is not my fault you got behind.  I was on time and you screwed with MY schedule.  I will get into the chair if and when I am damned ready to, and you can shove it up your a** being in a hurry! Do NOT get into a hurry putting me on either.  You can make a FATAL mistake when you are in a hurry!  I want the pleasure of you putting me on in a medically pleasing manner.    And do NOT get all pissy with me when I am all pissy with you because it is 3:30 and my on time is 3:00 and I know I will not get out of here until 8 oclock tonight and you are leaving in five minutes.  So please take your time with me whether late or early.  After all this is my lifeline you have in your hands while you put me on and take me off of the dialysis machine!  Thank you!

Katherine

[Rerun]

RANT!

To My Dialysis Tech or Nurse:

Do NOT rush me when you, as a tech, are running late. It is not my fault you got behind.  I was on time and you screwed with MY schedule.  I will get into the chair if and when I am damned ready to, and you can shove it up your a** being in a hurry! Do NOT get into a hurry putting me on either.  You can make a FATAL mistake when you are in a hurry!  I want the pleasure of you putting me on in a medically pleasing manner.    And do NOT get all pissy with me when I am all pissy with you because it is 3:30 and my on time is 3:00 and I know I will not get out of here until 8 oclock tonight and you are leaving in five minutes.  So please take your time with me whether late or early.  After all this is my lifeline you have in your hands while you put me on and take me off of the dialysis machine!  Thank you!

Katherine

I'm going to have to "print" this off and hang it in the center somewhere!   

[kitkatz]

I think I will, too. I think maybe I will clean it up a little for presentation to the clinic. Here is a cleaned up version of it. It is would be more politically correct to post this one at a center.

To My Dialysis Tech or Nurse:

Do NOT rush me when you, as a tech, are running late. It is not my fault you got behind.  I was on time and you messed with MY schedule.  I will get into the chair if and when I am ready to, and you can shove it if you are in a hurry! Do NOT get into a hurry putting me on either.  You can make a FATAL mistake when you are in a hurry!  I want the pleasure of you putting me on in a medically pleasing manner.  And do NOT get all mad with me when I am all mad with you because it is 3:30 and my on time is 3:00 and I know I will not get out of here until 8 o’clock tonight and you are leaving in five minutes.  So please take your time with me whether late or early.  After all this is my lifeline you have in your hands while you put me on and take me off of the dialysis machine!  Thank you!

[kevno]

Never get rushed by the Nurses/Techs they know what I am like now that they are trying to needle me again. I do get in late 7.30am, that is when my driver is not on holiday. Last three weeks been getting in for 7am. OK, the unit opens at 7am but some of the patients have been waiting since 6.30am - 6.45am WHY? Can not do to hang around, I have to get off the unit and go to the cafe or for a walk. SO if I get pushed and they are late I will only make it later for them

[meadowlandsnj]

My "time" there is defined by the dialysis machine.  There is a timer on the controls and my time is whatever is on that.  I go from 10am to2pm.  I never get on the machine the right time.  It averages out to 10:20 to 10:40. 

[nkviking75]

Another complicating factor for me is that there are a lot of variables affecting how long it takes from the time I sit down until the time when my blood is flowing through the machine.  One or two of the nurses at my center can put in my needles on the first try with a minimum of fuss, and do it quickly.  On the other extreme are nurses who are always slow, or nurses who have to stick me extra times because they miss on the first try, or who have to keep tinkering with my venous needle to keep me running.  So there is no consistency in their performance.  When I had fistulas I got a reputation for being a "tough stick", and I think some people on staff are intimidated by my access to this day, even though my graft has been much easier on everyone.

[Zach]

Obviously, schedules are necessary.  But when a patient is late to the chair by 10 or 15 minutes, it is wrong for the patient care staff to cut the dialysis time.  It's a power struggle, unfortunately.

[Bajanne]

At my centre, they never cut time, even if you are late.  Time there is counted from the time your lines are in and the BP is taken by the machine.