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A little
about myself
I was diagnosed with
nephritis when I was 18 years old
(I am now 107 in dog years). I started on
hemodialysis when I was 21. I was
on the machine for 7 months until
my father gave me one of his
kidneys. |
This transplant
lasted 7 years finally scarring
and chronic rejection took its
toll. I then was back on Dialysis
for 3 years waiting on a kidney.
I received a cadaver transplant
and again it lasted 7 years.
I am currently on hemodialysis at
AHDC in St Louis, MO. I started
back on in December of 98. |
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I currently go to
Dialysis on Monday, Wednesday,
and Friday for 3 1/2 hours per
treatment. I don't urinate and
this is how I get rid of the
waste and fluid that builds-up in
my body.
Charles He left to go to another
unit closer to his house. |
| Here is Diane
talking with a patient |
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typing in the
patients status. blood pressure |
| Here is what the
dialysis Machine look like. The
round part is the pump and the
cylinder is the dialysis |
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Here they have
put in the first needle. #16, the
size of a ball point pen
cartridge |
| Here goes the
second one IN, thank God for
Hail Mary's
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Here is the blood
flowing out my arm, through the
machine and back in |
| Upper arm
fistula, The surgeon placed a
rubber Gore-Tex tube in my arm
and hooked it into the
artery and vein |
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The blood flows
through the tubing. the pump
pushes against the tube to make
it move. |
| Before getting on
the machine the nurse weighs the
patient to see how much fluid he
or she has on. Remember all
fluids will stay in a patient
until he comes here to have the
fluid removed |
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I currently go to
Dialysis on Monday, Wednesday,
and Friday for 3 1/2 hours per
treatment. I don't urinate and
this is how I get rid of the
waste and fluid that builds-up in
my body.
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We do alot of
sitting, here the patient is
watching TV. I usually eat my
lunch, watch the 12:00 news and
then sleep till 4:00 |
| The Staff keeps
pretty busy |
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| Restock... |
We go through a
lot of saline |
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Jennifer left us
because her family moved to
another state.. |
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Here they are
removing the needles from my arm,
get's kinda messy sometimes. I
have to hold the stick for about
20 min's before it quits
bleeding. |
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Remember
Potassium Kills... |
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