Fresenius Medical Care Activates Disaster Response Team and Patient Hotline for Winter Storm Juno in the Northeast
January 26 2015 - 6:56PM
Business Wire
Nation’s Leading Dialysis Provider Prepares to
Ensure Continued Patient Care in Affected Areas
In anticipation of Winter Storm Juno – which is threatening much
of the Northeast with blizzard conditions and up to three feet of
snow – Fresenius Medical Care North America (FMCNA), the nation’s
leading network of dialysis facilities, has activated its Incident
Command Team to begin implementing plans to ensure continued
patient care in the areas affected by the storm.
Patients seeking help with emergency plans or more
information about arranging alternate dialysis clinics should call
FMCNA’s toll-free Patient Emergency Hotline:
1-800-626-1297.
While storms and other natural disasters can be inconvenient and
even life-threatening for entire communities, they pose an
especially serious health threat to dialysis patients whose
treatments are delayed by flooding, electrical power outages or an
inability to access their normal treatment locations. Dialysis
patients require life-sustaining treatment typically three times a
week to remove waste products and extra fluids after their kidneys
have failed.
The Fresenius Medical Care Incident Command Team, assisted by
divisional, technical and regional employees, works closely with
local governments and community organizations such as the Kidney
Community Emergency Response (KCER) Coalition to prepare for and
respond quickly to a variety of disasters. FMCNA and its partners
are ready to deliver a variety of supplies including generators,
fuel, and bottled water to facilities and employees affected by
this storm.
FMCNA staff are also providing extra treatment shifts for
patients at clinics anticipated to be affected by the storm,
including clinics that may be required to close. The company opened
many clinics this past Sunday to prepare for any closures this
week, and they will open again this Sunday if needed to accommodate
patients who missed treatments. If necessary, dialysis treatments
also can be provided at alternate facilities for patients –
including those from other dialysis companies – whose regular
clinics are temporarily unavailable.
FMCNA recommends that dialysis patients have the following plans
in place:
- Phone numbers. Keep an emergency
contacts list, and call your dialysis facility when bad weather
threatens.
- Disaster plan. Talk to your
dialysis care team and family ahead of time about what to do in a
disaster. Monitor local weather forecasts.
- Emergency supplies. Pre-pack a
first-aid kit, flashlight and batteries, blankets, radio, cell
phone, food and medications.
- Transportation. In-center
patients should arrange with a friend, neighbor or family member
for backup transportation to their clinic.
- Power outages. Home dialysis
patients should follow the directions given during home training
for continuing dialysis in an emergency.
- Adjust insulin. Diabetics should
ask their doctor how to adjust their insulin dosage if severe
storms are forecast for their area.
“We’ve activated our disaster plans to help ensure uninterrupted
dialysis treatments for our patients across the Northeast,” said
Bill Numbers, senior vice president of operations shared services
and incident commander for disaster response and planning at FMCNA.
“We prepare for events like this by drawing upon FMCNA’s vast
network of resources across the country to help locales in need,
typically within hours of a storm.”
FMCNA’s natural disaster response plan has been tested and
validated many times in recent years, from Hurricanes Sandy, Ike
and Katrina, to last year’s Winter Storm Pax, which left nearly
800,000 homes and businesses across the U.S. South and East Coast
without power. As part of its business plan for continuous quality
improvement, the company has incorporated the lessons learned from
each of these events to improve its processes, resulting in very
effective disaster response capabilities.
For more information on FMCNA’s disaster response efforts and
important tips to help patients prepare for any emergency, visit
FMCNA’s Disaster Response website.
About Fresenius Medical Care North America
Through its leading network of more than 2,150 dialysis
facilities in North America and vascular access centers,
laboratory, pharmacy and affiliated hospitals and nephrology
practices, Fresenius Medical Care provides renal services to
hundreds of thousands of people throughout the United States,
Mexico and Canada. It is also the continent’s top producer of
dialysis equipment, dialyzers and related disposable products and a
major supplier of renal pharmaceuticals. For more information about
the company, visit www.fmcna.com; for information about patient
services, visit www.ultracare-dialysis.com.
Media Contact:Upward AgencyHeather Smith, 1-857-453-6701
/ voiceheather.smith@upwardagency.comorCompany
contact:Fresenius Medical CareCharles Hendricks, 1-678-285-9235
/ voicecharles.hendricks@fmc-na.com
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