FirstHealth Richmond Memorial Hospital to Offer Inpatient and Outpatient Dialysis Services

Muhammad J. Iqbal, M.D.

ROCKINGHAM– FirstHealth Richmond Memorial Hospital and DaVita Inc. are partnering to bring inpatient and outpatient dialysis services to patients in Richmond County.  The hospital will begin providing dialysis services to hospital patients in the coming weeks, and an outpatient dialysis center is expected to open as early as spring 2012.

“We are pleased to partner with DaVita to bring vital dialysis care options to the Richmond County community,” says John Jackson, Richmond Memorial president.  “The new inpatient center will provide the latest in dialysis treatments delivered by highly qualified staff.”

DaVita, a national provider of chronic and acute dialysis services, will manage the direct services for Richmond Memorial Hospital.  Hundreds of hospitals across the country partner with DaVita to provide inpatient dialysis services.  The inpatient dialysis suite at Richmond Memorial will be the first DaVita acute, or inpatient, service in Richmond County.

“DaVita is committed to working with physicians and hospitals in Richmond County to better serve the area’s kidney care patients,” says Sara Williams, DaVita acute facility administrator. “We understand the need for kidney care is growing across America, and DaVita supports the efforts of local communities to provide the best possible care for their patients.”

Inpatient dialysis services will be offered in the intensive care unit at Richmond Memorial beginning in January.  The hospital will further expand dialysis services to a newly renovated dialysis suite located in the former Palmer Hinson area.  Construction of that area is currently under way, and renovations are expected to be complete by March. The state-of-the-art suite will contain two dialysis beds for hospital patients needing acute dialysis services.

Board certified nephrologist Muhammad J. Iqbal, M.D., will serve as medical director of the dialysis unit at Richmond Memorial.

“Dialysis treatment is an important part of hospital care for dialysis patients,” says Dr. Iqbal.  “These patients will now be able to stay closer to home to receive this specialized treatment necessary for their condition.  The addition of this service elevates the level of care available to local patients.”

All services will be provided by dialysis registered nurses who have a combined 25 years of service in caring for dialysis patients.  The dialysis nurses will also provide ongoing education to patients in the hospital as well as provide information to the community on chronic kidney disease.

In the spring of 2012, DaVita will open the new Chronic Dialysis Center-Sandhills Dialysis Center to provide outpatient dialysis services to area residents.  The outpatient center will be located in the FirstHealth Richmond Medical Plaza at 809 Long Drive.

The facility will consist of 12 dialysis stations to provide dialysis services to patients six days a week.  The center will be staffed by registered nurses specially trained in dialysis care.

More than 31 million Americans are affected by chronic kidney disease, and most are unaware that they are affected by the disease. The chance that an American adult has chronic kidney disease is nearly 12 times greater than an American woman’s risk of getting breast cancer.

High-risk groups include African-Americans, Hispanics, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans and seniors (those 60 and over). Primary risk factors include diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease or a family history of these conditions.

FirstHealth Richmond Memorial Hospital is a division of FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital.  For more information, visit www.firsthealth.org.

DaVita Inc., a Fortune 500® company, is a leading provider of kidney care in the United States, delivering dialysis services to patients with chronic kidney failure and end-stage renal disease. DaVita strives to improve patients’ quality of life by innovating clinical care, and by offering integrated treatment plans, personalized care teams and convenient health-management services. As of June 30, 2011, DaVita operated or provided administrative services at 1,669 dialysis facilities, serving about 131,000 patients. DaVita supports numerous programs dedicated to creating positive, sustainable change in communities around the world. The company’s leadership development initiatives and social responsibility efforts have been recognized by Fortune, Modern Healthcare, Newsweek and WorldBlu. For more information, please visit www.davita.com.