CMS launches initiative to improve care for hemodialysis patients
Compliance Monitor, April 21, 2004
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CMS announced April 14 it is leading a national initiative to increase the use of fistulas in providing hemodialysis for Medicare beneficiaries with kidney failure, also known as end stage renal disease (ESRD).
A fistula is a connection that is surgically created by joining a vein and an artery in the forearm that allows blood from the artery to flow into the vein and provide access for dialysis.
"Fistulas are the gold standard for establishing access to a patient's circulatory system in order to provide life-sustaining dialysis," CMS Administrator Mark B. McClellan, MD, PhD, said in a press release. "They last longer, need less rework, and are associated with lower rates of infections, hospitalization, and death for Medicare beneficiaries than other types of access."
"This initiative aims to improve the quality of care and quality of life for Americans living with kidney failure," added Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. "It is one of the many ways we're working to help people receiving Medicare to get the best possible treatment."
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