What To Expect
Here is what a typical treatment session is like:
- You and your partner will check your weight, temperature, blood pressure, and pulse, and write them down in a treatment log.
- You’ll set up your machine, test alarms, and set a fluid removal goal for the treatment (this tells the dialysis machine how much water to take out of your blood).
- You’ll check to be sure all the tubing connections are secure and run some saline through the dialyzer and tubing to be sure all air is gone.
- You’ll gather the supplies you need and any activities you want to do while you’re on the machine.
- You’ll use your access during a treatment to bring your blood to the dialyzer and back to you. Two needles are used: an arterial needle (color-coded red) to take your blood to the dialyzer, and a venous needle (color-coded blue) to return your blood.
- You’ll clean off your arm, and put the needles in and tape them down.
- Once the needles are in place, you’ll connect them to the tubing and dialyzer, and start the machine.
- During the treatment, you or the machine will take and record your blood pressure several times.
- When the treatment is done, you’ll use saline to rinse back your blood, shut off the machine, and take out the needles.
