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Fresenius Kidney Care's Home Dialysis Program (Case Study)
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Fresenius Kidney Care's Home Dialysis Program (Case Study)

Learning Systems for Accountable Care Organizations
Published: Jul 30, 2020
Publisher: Baltimore, MD: U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Health Delivery System Reforms Medicare

Associated Project

Learning Systems for Accountable Care Organizations

Time frame: 2013-2020

Prepared for:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation

Authors

Meg Maxwell

Natalie Graves

Key Findings

  • As a result of Fresenius Kidney Care’s efforts, the percentage of ESRD patients cared for by Fresenius Kidney Care who receive home dialysis has steadily increased over the past several years.
  • Fresenius Kidney Care was able to scale its home dialysis program incrementally by leveraging the time and expertise of existing staff, and as a result the organization increased its capacity to care for additional home dialysis patients.
  • Fresenius Kidney Care found that intensive patient education about the dialysis treatment options and disease management helped patients and their families to better navigate the grief, depression, anger, and anxiety that they may experience during a care transition.

This case study describes Fresenius Kidney Care’s approach to increasing patients’ access to home dialysis. The organization’s leaders laid the foundation for this transition by meeting with clinic staff and nephrologists to increase their understanding of home dialysis while expanding the Fresenius Kidney Care staffing model to support this care option. Fresenius Kidney Care also established a workflow to identify and engage patients for whom home dialysis is appropriate, prepare them for treatment, and provide them with support in their homes. This case study is useful for dialysis organizations and other health care organizations that are considering strategies for expanding access to, and participation in, home dialysis.

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