Does anyone have any suggestions on how best to deal with taking care of someone on dialysis?

This is not the advice that you asked for, but make sure you check with your health insurance carrier and see if they have a disease management program you can participate in; you can get a lot of support and help from these programs. Many carriers have nurse practitioners staffing the support programs and they will assign someone to work with you and help you understand about managing the day-to-day care.

Our carrier is Medicare, and in my experience they don’t do squat, but I will ask.

Alot of times hospitals and/or nephrologists have dialysis educators. There may even be a support group somewhere close by you. If he goes on hemodialysis, there should be alot of support from the HD center. Start with asking your doctor or his nurse for information. Kidney failure is on the rise and there is alot of information out there. Look on the web for support groups. Many times, they have alot of good information.

@Darwin – I don’t have any advice, my Dad was just getting to that point before he had his stroke. I just wanted to let you know that you and yours are in my thoughts.

@cak – Thanks. Every day is a new adventure. I just wish I could make him feel better about it.

{hugs}

As my dad will tell you, you want foods that are low in purines (but the doctors should probably cover that). You could also try PMing shilolo, his wife, I believe, is a nephrologist.

The National Kidney Foundation has a lot of useful information, and links to local chapters. The Alzheimer Association was very helpful with support in the early stages of my mother’s diagnosis, so I can imagine that the Kidney Foundation also has programs that will be beneficial.

@andrew – He has gout, so he already has to eat a diet low in purines, so that should help. I am assuming that our nephrologist will tell us what we (I) need to do, but I am looking for the little things the docs and the techs don’t think of that make life a tiny bit better.