Kenmore Mercy Hospital and Mount St. Mary’s Hospital recently introduced next generation technology for dialysis care called Tablo Hemodialysis System. The changeover to the new dialysis program within Catholic Health is aimed at improving the patient experience, while reducing the cost and complexity historically associated with dialysis treatment.
Tablo, which is about the size of a small dorm refrigerator, is creating new efficiencies for Catholic Health, which launched the system at Mercy Hospital of Buffalo and Sisters of Charity Main Campus in fall 2021.
With its single-machine, ease-of-use functionality, and ability to convert to other settings, Tablo is helping to control costs and transform dialysis care at Catholic Health and throughout the country.
More than one in seven people in America, or 15% of the U.S. population, are estimated to have chronic kidney disease in which the kidneys have difficulty filtering waste and excess fluid from the blood. If the disease progresses to kidney failure, patients require dialysis or a kidney transplant to survive.
Otherwise known as Renal Replacement Therapy (RRT), dialysis can be an expensive and cumbersome treatment. In the U.S., nearly 85 million dialysis treatments are performed annually, costing more than $70 billion.
“Tablo’s all-in-one system offers significant benefits, improving comfort and convenience for patients while offering a safer, more streamlined dialysis process for nurses and other caregivers,” said Heather Telford, MS, BSN, CEN, NEA-BC, Vice President of Patient Care Services at Kenmore Mercy and Mount St. Mary’s Hospitals.
“The portability and ease of use of Tablo has enabled us to deliver treatment anywhere within our facility and by more nurses, giving us more options to better serve our patients,” she added.
“With a growing demand for dialysis within our system, Tablo provided us an opportunity to reduce costs by replacing multiple machines with one compact device, while still maintaining high quality care for our patients who need this specialized service,” said Joyce Markiewicz, Executive Vice President & Chief Business Development Officer for Catholic Health. “The more options we can offer our community, the better, especially in the midst of COVID-19, which has led to an influx of patients experiencing kidney failure. The features and capabilities of this new technology creates a safer and more efficient patient and caregiver experience.”
