Dialysis center not possible at this time
On March 8th, 2023, Catalina Island Medical Center held a forum to discuss the desire to have a dialysis clinic in Avalon. The Board of Directors and Administration greatly appreciate the community for reaching out and expressing their needs for additional services in our community.
Dialysis is an extremely complex renal replacement therapy that has a great impact on the patients and healthcare systems. The board of directors and the hospital administration have been studying this matter with the hope and desire to safely provide this service to the island residents. The board of directors requested that some board members reach out to Nephrology specialist who are dialysis specialists and currently work as medical directors of dialysis centers on the mainland requesting their help and advice and exploring their interest in providing this service to the island. Their response was consistent and clear. They indicated that unfortunately, at this time, it is not possible to establish a hemodialysis center on the island. This is due to the lack of the supportive services needed to protect Hemodialysis patients, which may expose them to unnecessary risk, as well as the prohibitive cost of the service.
At this time our goal is to continue exploring other alternatives (such as hemodialysis at home), which may allow the island residents to have hemodialysis service on the island. For this to be possible, we must continue focusing our efforts and resources on the future growth of the hospital and the continued expansion of its services. This will allow us the ability to provide dialysis patients with the supporting services they need to ensure their safety. Expanding services will also allow us to continue to build other needed and necessary services that will benefit all patients including patients who are in need or will become in need of hemodialysis.
As part of the effort to study this serious matter, CIMC hired Larry Day, an expert in dialysis operations, to better understand the financial impact of implementing a dialysis clinic on the island, and to provide an expert opinion to CIMC and the community.
Larry is the President and Founder of Dialysis Management Inc., Nephrology Management Inc., and Integrated Renal Care. These firms provide business management consulting services to the renal care field. For over 20 years Larry presented regional seminars designed to help renal care business management professionals. Subjects included case management, global cost management and revenue enhancement for dialysis facilities and Nephrology practices.
We would like to assure all the island residents that we will continue to work towards addressing the need for different medical services on the island. After investigating the effects of implementing a dialysis center, we have concluded that we would not be able to provide the service for the community at this time.
There are alternative solutions available that may better serve the needs of patients with kidney disease who live on Catalina Island. Telemedicine and the use of home hemodialysis technologies may provide a suitable option for most patients in our community. Patients could receive treatment from qualified medical professionals without the need for a dedicated facility on the island. This option may be offered to the patients by their current dialysis centers. Patients may request home hemodialysis from their dialysis center. The patient’s nephrologist will evaluate if this type of care is appropriate for the patient. With approval from their dialysis center, the service will be arranged, education and training will be provided, and the dialysis center will continue to monitor the patient’s condition.
While the need for medical services in Avalon is high, establishing a traditional dialysis center is not the most suitable option currently. The limited resources and infrastructure of a small town like Avalon are not able to support the safe and high-quality provision of dialysis treatment. It may be more appropriate to consider alternative solutions that better suit the needs and resources of the community.
There are many exciting developments on the horizon with healthcare technology. Healthcare is changing at a rapid pace, with new advancements and innovations emerging almost constantly. CIMC will continue to monitor advances in dialysis and when it is feasible to implement in our community, CIMC will proudly provide this service.
You may find the analysis of a dialysis clinic on our website at: cimedicalcenter.org
Sincerely,
Catalina Island Medical Center
Board of Directors
