Fresenius dialysis clinic in Dallas' Oak Cliff won't take tree down

Fresenius dialysis clinic in Dallas' Oak Cliff won't take tree down

12:00 AM CST on Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Norma Adams-Wade

Don't be fooled. This is not an ordinary Christmas tree story.

This story could be told in July – or February, April, October or November.

This dispatch is about a Christmas tree for all seasons.

It is an evergreen (OK, so it's an artificial evergreen) that stays up year-round at the Fresenius Medical Care South Oak Cliff Dialysis Clinic at Zang Boulevard and Illinois Avenue. The decorations change to match the season and holiday.

During a recent visit to the clinic, patients and staff mingled near the tree and a table set with colorful Christmas cookies and punch – not that unusual for this time of year.

Patients suggested fast-forwarding mentally to mid-January. The tree will still be there, but the decorations will have changed to New Year's Eve party hats and horns and small figures of Father Time and the diapered New Year baby, they said.

In February, the tree will still be standing – but decked with Valentine hearts and candies.

Each month ushers in new decorations to fit the time of year, and the dialysis patients said they look forward to whatever theme is coming next.

Other decoration themes include St. Patrick's Day in March, Mother's Day and Father's Day in May and June, the Fourth of July, medical tools to highlight the work of physicians in August, the start of school in September, and Thanksgiving in November.

The year-round tree at the dialysis clinic has become an inspiration, patients said. It brightens their days and helps take their minds off their medical conditions, which often can be challenging.

"I've been coming over 25 years," including time at a previous location," said Thelma Steed, who has six children, nine grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. "The patients here are like an extended family. It's like we spend more time here than with our own families. I've learned to accept the routine. It helps to have something to smile about. The tree does that."

'It makes my day'

Barbie Roberts, an area administrative assistant assigned to the Oak Cliff clinic, started the all-season tree a year ago. The creative assistant said arts and crafts are her hobby. She also has decorated the clinic with stuffed animals that she makes out of discarded uniforms and other clothing.

"I enjoy doing things at the clinic to help the patients smile," Ms. Roberts said, adding that her tree at home stays up year-round, too. "If they get on the machine in a good mood, it makes my day."

She said she keeps patients guessing which designs she'll use each month. Halloween is her favorite holiday for decorating; this year, she placed small carved pumpkins on and around the tree. After Halloween, one patient took some pumpkins home, made a pie and brought it back for the staff and other patients to enjoy, Ms. Roberts said.

Ms. Steed most looks forward to April, when the tree bears bunny rabbits, candy eggs and stuffed animals in keeping with the Easter season.

"Easter represents a new birth, a new beginning," Ms. Steed said. "I like Christmas, but Easter is the best for me."

Donna Williams, a patient for six years, said Christmas is her favorite season and decoration theme.

"The tree? I just love it!" Ms. Williams said. "Right now is best. When I come here, the tree is the light of my day. When you don't feel good, the tree cheers you up."

Fresenius Medical Care area manager Collin Verheyden and clinic manager Luna Fajardo said the tree is important for more than just making patients smile.

Comfort factor

Dialysis can be grueling, and if patients lose interest in coming, the results can be life-threatening, Mr. Verheyden said. He commended Ms. Fajardo and her staff for going the extra mile to make the clinic as homey and inviting as possible.

Patients spend an average of about four hours a day, three times a week hooked to a dialysis machine, Mr. Verheyden said. He manages 11 of Dallas' 28 facilities. Boston-based Fresenius has 2,221 clinics that treat about 172,000 of the 1.5 million dialysis patients worldwide, he said. Some studies show that the number of dialysis patients nationally will double in 18 to 20 years as baby boomers continue to age, he said.

Technical advancements have streamlined the process of reading treatment charts, Mr. Verheyden said. And each chair at the clinic has its own flat-screen television that shows cable channels. Patients can watch television, bring blankets and sleep or bring reading materials, snacks and handicrafts to keep them occupied and as comfortable as possible during treatment, he said. Researchers are even developing a touch-screen television, he said.

"Nobody here wants to be here," he said. "Our job is to try to make sure they're comfortable and well cared for."

Ms. Fajardo said that some patients come for "nocturnal dialysis" after work and that others have portable units that allow them to be dialyzed at home. But many patients prefer to come at times when they can visit with other patients.

A transplant is the patient's only way out of dialysis, Ms. Fajardo said.

"This is just their life," she said.

That's why a pleasant environment is important, and the year-round Christmas tree is one way to create that atmosphere.

E-mail nwade@dallasnews .com or fax information to 214-977-8319.

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