Central Highlands Rural Health provides dialysis services to residents across the Hepburn Shire and Macedon Ranges Shire at our Daylesford and Kyneton campuses. Dialysis is life support treatment that does the job of the kidneys when they don’t work properly. Each treatment filters harmful waste, salt and excess fluid from the blood, and restores a healthy balance to a person’s blood. Since 1 July 2023 894 treatment sessions have been provided to dialysis patients which is an average of 28 sessions per week. There are 6 chairs running 6 times a week and giving the service capacity to provide services at 33 sessions a week.
Recently, staff at Daylesford Health’s dialysis unit requested a portable ultrasound device that will assist them to view newly formed fistulas due to an increase in complex care needs of their patients. Thanks to many small donations made to the health service, funds were available so that the device could be purchased quickly and utilised to improve patient care.
Meagan Harding, Daylesford Health Director of Nursing, said:
“The portable ultrasound will aid our expert team to work with complex cases in our dialysis unit as well as assisting with some Acute and Urgent Care Centre cases. It is wonderful that the generosity of our community allows us to purchase vital equipment when it is needed. It goes to show that every donation helps, whether it’s big or small. Thank you to our donors who support us to provide best care to our patients.”
Central Highlands Rural Health is celebrating World Kidney Day on 14 March 2024 which “aims to raise awareness of the importance of our kidneys to our overall health and to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems worldwide.” World Kidney Day (www.worldkidneyday.org).
To find out more about Central Highlands Rural Health’s dialysis services please visit: www.chrh.org.au/services/dialysis
Peter and Penny using the portable ultrasound device.Can you support your local health service?
- Give a gift via www.chrh.org.au/donate
- Volunteer via www.chrh.org.au/volunteer
