Twenty-seven-year-old William Tackie is now able to spend more time following his passion for music while managing his own dialysis treatment at St Pancras Hospital

Published: 15 May, 2015
by TOM FOOT

NHS patients are being shown how to treat themselves in a new “self care” dialysis unit in St Pancras Hospital.

The kidney and diabetes treatment centre, which is run by the Royal Free Foundation Trust, was set up to improve treatment times for patients who can waste hours waiting to be hooked up to life-saving machines.

Eventually 72 patients will be given “intensive training” on how to use the new system which could save wasted time by “reducing reliance on nursing assistance”, according to the Royal Free. 

Dialysis is a form of treatment where a machine replicates the kidney’s function. Typically, the blood is transferred out of the body into a machine, which filters out the waste products and excess fluids. The filtered blood is then passed back into the body. Patients usually undergo three sessions a week, each lasting four hours. 

William Tackie, 27, who has had dialysis for eight years, said: “The thought of doing it yourself at first is daunting, but you begin to realise that it is actually not as hard as you thought it was going to be. The more time you spend getting into it, the easier it becomes. Instead of waiting for a nurse who might be busy to get you set up, and then help you off when it’s finished, you can get started on your own and take yourself off. 

“By the time someone would be there to help you off the machine you have already left.”

He added: “It’s really liberating being able to do it myself. It’s also kind of impressive and really satisfying doing it myself. I have even shown other patients what to do and given them advice.”

Mr Tackie suffered permanent kidney damage as a young child and now uses his dialysis time to work on his music.

Diane Walker, home and supported self-care dialysis specialist sister, said: “It’s not just the treatment. They have to have the background knowledge about their diet and medication, blood results, how to look after the access line and infection control.

“People surprise you. You might get a lady in here who is 70 years old who wants to do everything for herself, and if you try and help, she says ‘no, I will do it’.”

Ms Walker said that the training and skills required to administer self-care helped many patients to escape the feeling of helplessness often associated with dialysis.

She said: “You have patients who are struggling to come to terms with their condition, but by learning about their dialysis and doing it for themselves they get a buzz out of it and a sense of achievement.

“Patients have more flexibility as they can come in at a time that suits them. We don’t have to consider whether there is a nurse there who can help them get set up.

“It’s all about making the patient’s life easier and giving them more flexibility without putting a machine in their home.”

Ms Walker added that the different structure had helped to foster a more communal atmosphere.

She added: “We get patients who are more advanced in their learning who see patients struggling, and they will intervene and give them advice, and then they have a natter and introduce themselves.”

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