Has your Christmas dialysis been messed UP!

[kevno]

In short I am being dialyzed once in five days, two times over the week. I was wondering how you feel after that two day break from dialysis. I know I feel that I am ready for dialysis sometimes have a headache, sometimes the shakes. Plus more fluid on than usual. But the unit in there wisdom. Have decided to dialyse me on the Sat 16th, Thurs 19th and not again until Friday 22nd then back to 3 times a week Sunday, Wensday and Friday for the next two weeks. When my dialysis days are Tues, Thurs and Saturday. Plus the unit is closed for only two days 25th December and the 1st January? I have been talking to the nurse who as done the rota but she will not explain way she as done it this way . Causing chaos on the unit.

I know how most units  have done the Christmas dialysis, put the Two Mondays back to Sunday and that in the only change. But the one I use. A total change for every patient plus I have to go on three Sundays. Then it goes back to normal Tues, Thurs and Saturday.

I think five days with One dialysis or seven days with two dialysis would be hard to do for any renal patient who are used to getting dialyzed three times a week. Would You Manage it OK! I know I will find it hard to do. Those patient who are overloaded will find it the hardest.

[AlasdairUK]

Hi Kevno,

Mine has changed to my Monday shift being on Sunday, but my unit is running a post twilight shift on Saturday 23rd ie morning, afternoon, evening and then a midnight service. I have voluntered for the midnight service so I can have Christmas Eve off, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. I then go in on Wednesday night for my twilight

[Panda_9]

There is no way I would last if I was in that position, I cant even last 2 days off. I would most definitely end up in emergency.

[angieskidney]

Wow Kevno that is crazy! They don't seem to care if the dialysis patients feel like crap in their Christmas as long as the staff get their precious day off! That sucks!

I thought every unit did it the switch Monday to Sunday way like mine is.

[nextnoel]

What idiots!  That's absolutely ridiculous - but hey, as long as the staff has its priorities straight, i.e., getting that holiday off.  A new wrinkle on Christmas - celebrate the birth of Jesus by causing the death of a few dialysis patients!

[Michelle]

In short no I wouldn't cope with it and would be kicking up a stink-and hope maybe you and other patients can get together and complain. Why is it so messed up a whole week before christmas so you get so little dialysis anyway as in most units I imagine it is a normal week. Ours is also moving monday back to sunday so I will dialyse Christmas Eve and New years eve and then everything else is as normal.
It sounds like you have someone who has messed up big time on the rota and although we had someone do this one year it wasn't to our detriment-she just chose the hard way of sorting it out. This time of year everyone drinks and eats more and it really does make you wonder where the sense is in this regime. I have on occassion taken 3 whole days off and really felt it and only did it when the unit had to close for emergency water treatment and a holiday.

[stauffenberg]

This Christmas schedule -- convenient for the staff but cruel to the patients -- is part of the general problem that dialysis, which is the very life of the patients and merely a part of the life, the career, of the staff, is paradoxically run for the benefit of the staff rather than the patients.  I have always found it disturbing that while dialysis is of a much higher technical quality in Europe than in America, because it is run by the government rather than for private profit, it is also much less convenient for the patients, since it is typically available only during the day, while the U.S. offers treatment in the evening and sometimes even overnight.  This is a problem with European culture generally, which still operates on a 9 to 5 basis, with the stores closed on Sundays -- and in some countries, even closed Wednesday and Saturday afternoons as well!  So the dialysis patient has the grim choice of having either medically sub-standard dialysis in the U.S. with its attendant higher death rate but at evening hours that allow the patient to maintain a normal job, or to have high-standard dialysis in Europe with treatment times only between 10 AM and 4 PM, guaranteed to destroy your working capacity, even if they keep you healthy enough to be able to work!

[Hawkeye]

The way we are handling X-mas and New Years Day was voted on by the patients.  We are going to be open X-mas Eve and New Years Eve both of which are Sundays.  We will open a little early on both those days so we close early too, and then the schedule will go back to normal starting that Tuesday.  I know other clinics in the area though that the patients actually wanted to just come on their regular days so they are open for X-mas and New Years.

[Zach]

The way we are handling X-mas and New Years Day was voted on by the patients.  We are going to be open X-mas Eve and New Years Eve both of which are Sundays.  We will open a little early on both those days so we close early too, and then the schedule will go back to normal starting that Tuesday.  I know other clinics in the area though that the patients actually wanted to just come on their regular days so they are open for X-mas and New Years.

I think that's very fair.

So the dialysis patient has the grim choice of having either medically sub-standard dialysis in the U.S. with its attendant higher death rate but at evening hours that allow the patient to maintain a normal job, or to have high-standard dialysis in Europe with treatment times only between 10 AM and 4 PM, guaranteed to destroy your working capacity, even if they keep you healthy enough to be able to work!

That's why there is home hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis.

[BigSky]

In short I am being dialyzed once in five days, two times over the week. I was wondering how you feel after that two day break from dialysis. I know I feel that I am ready for dialysis sometimes have a headache, sometimes the shakes. Plus more fluid on than usual. But the unit in there wisdom. Have decided to dialyse me on the Sat 16th, Thurs 19th and not again until Friday 22nd then back to 3 times a week Sunday, Wensday and Friday for the next two weeks. When my dialysis days are Tues, Thurs and Saturday. Plus the unit is closed for only two days 25th December and the 1st January? I have been talking to the nurse who as done the rota but she will not explain way she as done it this way . Causing chaos on the unit.

I am missing something.   I do not see the once in five day thing from what you stated. Or is that to something else?   

The 16th is sat.  The 19th is a Tuesday, not a Thursday,  then 22nd is a Friday as stated.  With the schedule you stated you still are going 3 times a week with only 1 day off for treatments with the regular 2 days after the 3 rd treatment of the week.



Agreed the schedule is stupid considering that the only people who need to change their schedule would be the M,W, F people in that instead of Monday of those two weeks they would come in on Sundays (Dec 25 to the 24 and Jan1 to Dec 31) and keep their W, F times the same and leave the T,T,F people where they are.

[Zach]

...  the only people who need to change their schedule would be the M,W, F people in that instead of Monday of those two weeks they would come in on Sundays (Dec 25 to the 24 and Jan1 to Dec 31) and keep their W, F times the same and leave the T,T,F people where they are.

That is how we are doing it at my center.

[MattyBoy100]

My centre is actually having us dialyze an extra day so we are doing 4 sessions instead of 3 so I will be doing Mon, Weds, Fri, Sun of Xmas week then Weds, Fri, Su and back to normal routine on Weds.  They don't usually open on Sundays.

Like I keep telling everyone, my unit is excellent and I truly believe the patients come first where I am!

Ok, going 4 times in a week is a pain in the butt but it has it's advantages for me, the main one being I have to have both Xmas Eve and New Year's Eve off work when normally I would be expected to work as I work for a supermarket.

So I'm not complaining at all.   

[AlasdairUK]

The way we are handling X-mas and New Years Day was voted on by the patients.  We are going to be open X-mas Eve and New Years Eve both of which are Sundays.  We will open a little early on both those days so we close early too, and then the schedule will go back to normal starting that Tuesday.  I know other clinics in the area though that the patients actually wanted to just come on their regular days so they are open for X-mas and New Years.

I think that's very fair.

So the dialysis patient has the grim choice of having either medically sub-standard dialysis in the U.S. with its attendant higher death rate but at evening hours that allow the patient to maintain a normal job, or to have high-standard dialysis in Europe with treatment times only between 10 AM and 4 PM, guaranteed to destroy your working capacity, even if they keep you healthy enough to be able to work!

That's why there is home hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis.

Not everyone can do PD or HHD.

My centre is actually having us dialyze an extra day so we are doing 4 sessions instead of 3 so I will be doing Mon, Weds, Fri, Sun of Xmas week then Weds, Fri, Su and back to normal routine on Weds.  They don't usually open on Sundays.

Like I keep telling everyone, my unit is excellent and I truly believe the patients come first where I am!

Ok, going 4 times in a week is a pain in the butt but it has it's advantages for me, the main one being I have to have both Xmas Eve and New Year's Eve off work when normally I would be expected to work as I work for a supermarket.

So I'm not complaining at all.

You will be going 4 times in one week, but when you go back to normal it will be just the two times on Wed and Fri. It all works out in the end. You need to keep in mind that staff would also like to spend some of the festive period with friends and family and we all need to accommodate each other.

[angela515]

So the dialysis patient has the grim choice of having either medically sub-standard dialysis in the U.S. with its attendant higher death rate but at evening hours that allow the patient to maintain a normal job, or to have high-standard dialysis in Europe with treatment times only between 10 AM and 4 PM, guaranteed to destroy your working capacity, even if they keep you healthy enough to be able to work!

That's why there is home hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis.

Not everyone can do PD or HHD.

I believe Zach was only mentioning the fact that there is PD and HHD options available to point out to stauffenberg that not everyone on dialysis HAS to be in-center hemo and deal with stuff like this. At least that's how I took it.

Yes it is true not everyone can do HHD or PD and therefore need to do in-center hemo... however, it is my belief that the dialysis patient is not given all the options and such to make a decision on what they would rather do. (Not all dialysis patients, sorry let me clarify... most/some dialysis patients.) I was one of those patients who never even HEARD of PD ever in my life, even after being on hemo for over a yr... and my doctor never told me about it, only way I found out, was online in a dialysis message board forum kinda like this. Reason my doctor gave me for not telling me and offering it to me? He was honest, he told me because he runs 3 dialysis clinics he would rather put his patients on hemo to go to his center than on PD where he only see's us once a month. Money I tell you... 

[MattyBoy100]

This Christmas schedule -- convenient for the staff but cruel to the patients -- is part of the general problem that dialysis, which is the very life of the patients and merely a part of the life, the career, of the staff, is paradoxically run for the benefit of the staff rather than the patients. I have always found it disturbing that while dialysis is of a much higher technical quality in Europe than in America, because it is run by the government rather than for private profit, it is also much less convenient for the patients, since it is typically available only during the day, while the U.S. offers treatment in the evening and sometimes even overnight. This is a problem with European culture generally, which still operates on a 9 to 5 basis, with the stores closed on Sundays -- and in some countries, even closed Wednesday and Saturday afternoons as well! So the dialysis patient has the grim choice of having either medically sub-standard dialysis in the U.S. with its attendant higher death rate but at evening hours that allow the patient to maintain a normal job, or to have high-standard dialysis in Europe with treatment times only between 10 AM and 4 PM, guaranteed to destroy your working capacity, even if they keep you healthy enough to be able to work!

not sure where you get your information from Stauffenberg but contrary to what is written, shops open here Sat afternoons/evenings and some are 24/7.  As for shops closing on Wednesday afternoons that all stopped years ago, unless of course, Europe still does it, but not here in the U.K. unless you live in some backwater place in the country.

[MattyBoy100]

Sorry, I missed another point of Stauffenberg's which is that treatment is only available between 10 am and 4 pm.  That is nonsense!  I work full - time as some of you will be aware and dialyze after work from 5, 6 or 7 pm in the evening until I finish after 4.25 hours on the machine.  This is on the National Health Service provided free by the government in the U.K.  I don't think we are as backward here as some of you would like to believe!   

[Zach]

Some people are full of nonsense.   

[JerseyGirl]

That schedule sounds funky to me - they should open the eve's and the MWF pts should dialyze Sunday Wednesday and Friday.  I would talk to the medical director about that.  He has final approval.

[Bajanne]

I hadn't added anything to this post because I didn't know what they were going to do.  Well, I found out yesterday.  They will be dialsysing us Monday people on Sunday, Christmas Eve and Sunday Old Year's Day.  But that is fine with me.  It frees me up not having to think about going in on Monday.

[gizmar]

I don't even "get" that Kevno - it seems somewhat (alot) irresponsible to leave patients without dialysing them for that long.  In our unit we dialyse at 5 a.m. rather than 7 a.m. so that all the runs can be finished early and the nurses can go home.  They do that for both Xmas and New Years.  I feel kinda sorry for the nurses because that means they have to be in by 4 a.m. to set up machines.  The patients don't mind too much - they just go back to sleep in the chairs or stretchers.

[angela515]

I'm not on in-center hemp anymore, but I wanted to comment anyways.

Why does everyone feel bad for the nurses having to work during holidays.. or staying late or coming in early?

It is there job... my dad works for Wal-mart, he has to work on holidays, and he is fine with that because it is his job. We do the holidays around his schedule... like for Thanksgiving, he had to work... so we ate Thanksgiving dinner when he got home around 530pm, when for 20 yrs we have always ate thanksgiving dinner around 1pm.

Millions of people have to work holidays... dont feel bad for the dialysis nurses... it is their job... they get vacation time just like everyone else...

 

[kevno]

Sorry it was my mistake on my post, just so issed off with a "P" it's Tuesday 19th not Thursdays my fault. We are getting dialyzed once in five days. I know not a lot of Renal Patients would not be able to cope with that. plus when so near Xmas 

Thank for you replies.

[AlasdairUK]

So the dialysis patient has the grim choice of having either medically sub-standard dialysis in the U.S. with its attendant higher death rate but at evening hours that allow the patient to maintain a normal job, or to have high-standard dialysis in Europe with treatment times only between 10 AM and 4 PM, guaranteed to destroy your working capacity, even if they keep you healthy enough to be able to work!

That's why there is home hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis.

Not everyone can do PD or HHD.

I believe Zach was only mentioning the fact that there is PD and HHD options available to point out to stauffenberg that not everyone on dialysis HAS to be in-center hemo and deal with stuff like this. At least that's how I took it.

Yes it is true not everyone can do HHD or PD and therefore need to do in-center hemo... however, it is my belief that the dialysis patient is not given all the options and such to make a decision on what they would rather do. (Not all dialysis patients, sorry let me clarify... most/some dialysis patients.) I was one of those patients who never even HEARD of PD ever in my life, even after being on hemo for over a yr... and my doctor never told me about it, only way I found out, was online in a dialysis message board forum kinda like this. Reason my doctor gave me for not telling me and offering it to me? He was honest, he told me because he runs 3 dialysis clinics he would rather put his patients on hemo to go to his center than on PD where he only see's us once a month. Money I tell you...

I appreciate the fact that there are differnent option, but I am unable to do PD and rely on HD. I can not do HDD, so I'm stuck with incentre treatment. This means that the shift times available play a big role in my life style. I'm lucky enough to be able to evening shifts so I can still work.

I'm not on in-center hemp anymore, but I wanted to comment anyways.

Why does everyone feel bad for the nurses having to work during holidays.. or staying late or coming in early?

It is there job... my dad works for Wal-mart, he has to work on holidays, and he is fine with that because it is his job. We do the holidays around his schedule... like for Thanksgiving, he had to work... so we ate Thanksgiving dinner when he got home around 530pm, when for 20 yrs we have always ate thanksgiving dinner around 1pm.

Millions of people have to work holidays... dont feel bad for the dialysis nurses... it is their job... they get vacation time just like everyone else...

 

I spend a lot of time with the nurses and have built a strong rapport with them. I empathize that they have to get up early and work hard to do a job that has a tangible effect on my life. While they may only be doing the job they are paid to do, however it is keeping me alive and I am truly grateful for the work they do. While they show genuine care for me and to make sure I receive the best care available.

I would also want them to spend Christmas with their families, also if the nurses are working on Christmas it means that the patients are also receiving treatment and I would prefer not to have to go in on Christmas. I am lucky enough that my unit like most have made realistic, workable solutions to accommodate everyone

[angela515]

 

[kitkatz]

I have no idea what the center is doing for Christmas, but my birthday is December 31 and I am not dialyzing on my birthday!  So there!