A call is being put out to all dialysis patients in and around Athabasca who would benefit from having a dialysis machine in town.
Andrea Belair is part of a group of dedicated volunteers who have been meeting with Alberta Health Services (AHS) and Northern Alberta Renal Program (NARP) in order to receive support for a dialysis machine for Athabasca.
“AHS seems to be on board with us, they really want to see a dialysis unit come to Athabasca,” Belair said. “NARP is another story. We have to build our case to convince NARP that there is a need in our community for this.”
“NARP started the meeting with a presentation on prevention, and we stopped their presentation because we felt we are past prevention,” she continued. “We are advocating for people already on dialysis and some will remain on dialysis for the remainder of their lives.”
Belair said NARP believes there are only seven dialysis patients in the area who would benefit from a machine locally.
“Our entire group, even AHS, disagreed with their numbers. So we have to go back to our community members who are on dialysis and ask them where they would like to get their treatments in Athabasca,” she said. “There are some patients they aren’t counting in their numbers that we are, (who) have relocated to Edmonton because they can’t drive, who would move back to Athabasca in a heartbeat if dialysis was available here.”
Belair is creating a list of people in the area on dialysis and asks those who are to contact her at 1-800-788-9041 ext. 6554 or [email protected].
“I need to talk to them myself to have their direct confirmation and permission to put their name on the list.”
Belair said another meeting with AHS and NARP is set up in September, and she would like to have numbers to present at it.
“Hopefully we can prove to them we have the number,” she said. “We have asked them to provide us with a mobile bus in the interim, to show them we can fill the bus.”
