A Chronic Kidney Disease patient conducting In-Center Hemodialysis messaged the KidneyBuzz Facebook Page and asked, "Do you know why some facility for dialysis don't have generators for when there's a blackout? I believe it's very important, today we had an incident where we had a blackout and there was some in need of assistance was taken in life support there was no light. It was very distraught to me. Can you imagine her husband who was there? It's our life on the line. Then they couldn't even get persons on wheelchair weight. I just think they should be better prepared."

Many Chronic Kidney Disease patients conducting Dialysis are angered by the fact that most states do not require Dialysis providers to have backup power via generators. In the case of hospitals, they are required to have backup power generators in order to comply with the National Fire Protection Association requirements. Moreover, many healthcare professionals agree that there are arguably few places in which reliable and sufficient backup power is more important than the healthcare industry. Hence, why are thousands of Dialysis patients left without backup power during an emergency? Sign the below petition so that all Dialysis patients can receive extra assurance they could continue receiving their life-sustaining treatments in the event of a power outage:

Darryl Ashford (Dialysis Patient) recalls a power outage at his Dialysis Center, “I’m there dialyzing. I’m trying to get the toxins out my body. I’m trying to get the extra fluids off.” He told WIVB News 4 (Buffalo, NY) that he waited about a half-hour to 45 minutes for the power to come back on. But it never did. Having been Dialyzed for only about an hour, Ashford was sent home. As Dialysis patients know, this interruption meant Ashford had to be extra vigilant about what he ate and drank until his next Dialysis Treatment scheduled for a couple of days later.

Mr. Ashford's Dialysis Care Provider did note that patients were given the option to continue their treatment at another Dialysis Unit or return the next day. However, most patients would agree that the options are burdensome and undesirable. The preferred option would be to have Dialysis Centers install backup generators to minimize treatment interruptions altogether.

Another Dialysis patient, Henry Ortiz, described Nurses and Office Staff as "scrambling" when the power went out at his Dialysis Facility. Ortiz said patients were instructed to use the machine’s manual hand crank to return the blood left in the tubing back to the body.

In hospitals, when the power goes out, backup generators automatically kick in, but Dialysis Centers are not required to have an alternate power source since they are considered smaller medical facilities. Dialysis Center protocol calls for staff to contact the local electric company and check how long the outage is expected to last. For short-term blackouts, the dialysis provider will most likely extend hours to accommodate for all patients to complete their treatment. However, for longer-term outages, patients may need to reschedule or skip treatments.

If you agree with Dialysis Centers having mandated backup power generators, then sign the below petition:

Name

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

I agree that Dialysis Centers should have mandated backup power generators similar to that of hospitals or larger medical facilities.

I Agree

I Disagree

Have you ever been at Dialysis when the power went out? What was your experience? If the power went out at your facility would you wait, reschedule or skip the treatment? Weigh-in with your own pros and cons at the KidneyBuzz.com Facebook Fan Page which has nearly 70,000 friends (click here). While you are there, like the KidneyBuzz.com Facebook Fan Page and visit KidneyBuzz.com regularly (approximately 250,000 monthly viewers) for the latest tailored breaking news and information which teaches those with Chronic Kidney Disease, on Dialysis, have Kidney Transplant, Diabetes, and High Blood Pressure how to better manage and improve their lives. You may become a regular visitor like, Tom Johnson who said, "Kidney Buzz is the best source of information for any patient that suffers from kidney disease. I'm happy that I found the advertisement for the Kidney Buzz warning bracelet that put me in touch. Thank you for all that you do."

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