History
In the 1960's during the early days of home hemodialysis, most treatments were done in the home, primarily because of the lack of hospital or clinic-based facilities. By 1973, 40% of dialysis patients were doing their treatments at home.
Decline of Home Hemodialysis
The percentage of home hemodialysis patients began to drop after 1973. Today the situation has almost reversed and most people on dialysis (90%) get their treatments at a dialysis center.
The drop in home hemodialysis was caused by the following:
- In 1972, Congress passed legislation that created a Medicare program to pay for dialysis treatment. This program made in-center hemodialysis financially more attractive to providers so dialysis centers started being built. These new centers were staffed by nurses and technicians. Centers could pay for these costs by treating more patients.
- As more people got dialysis they were able to live longer. Since they lived longer they began to develop other chronic conditions and complications.
- Throughout the 1970’s and 80’s, peritoneal dialysis (PD) began to become more popular, which led to less people choosing home hemodialysis.
- Until recently, all hemodialysis machines were built for use in the dialysis center. They were large, considered hard to use, and believed to be too expensive to be used at home.
- As the number of people getting treatment in centers grew, the number of centers that could offer home hemodialysis began to shrink.
New Interest in Home Hemodialysis
Home Hemodialysis is growing more popular among patients and doctors for the following reasons:
Doctors now recognize that home hemodialysis can give patients more benefits:
- Treat more patients more cost-effectively
- Reach more patients from rural regions
- Add a valuable new service to an existing in-center program
- Bring many of their patients improved quality of life
Patients understand that hemodialysis might help them:
- Feel better, maintain their lifestyle and help them have control over their disease
- Keep working and be more active
- Have freedom and flexibility to travel with their therapy with newer, portable machines
New data has shown that more frequent home hemodialysis may lead to better health with fewer problems, and because of new technology the number of people choosing home therapy has grown significantly.
To find if home hemodialysis is right for you, talk to your health care team about home hemodialysis. To find a home hemodialysis provider in your area go to www.homedialysis.org/locate or www.nxstage.com/find-a-center.
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