By KATIE HURST/ Staff Writer

MONTEVALLO — Montevallo residents requiring dialysis for chronic kidney disease will soon be able to find the care they need much closer to home thanks to the opening of Fresenius Medical Care Montevallo, which opened its doors for the first time Nov. 10.

The center hosted an open house from 4-6 p.m. for the community and prospective patients to tour the facility and ask questions about the services it will provide.

Clinical manager Maria Rooks said the new facility currently has 10 dialysis treatment stations complete with individual TV monitors.

She said the convenience of a local treatment facility and the level of comfort provided to the patients will greatly impact lives.

“Dialysis patients spend many hours receiving treatment each week, so we are pleased to offer this level of care in a more convenient location for people in the Montevallo area,” she said.

Each treatment takes about four hours and most patients require dialysis three times a week, she said. Before the opening of the Montevallo facility, the closest treatment facilities were in Alabaster and Clanton, she said.

“Most of the time, they live right here and are going other places for care,” Rooks said. “It will be so much easier for them to go to Montevalllo than making the drive to Alabaster or Clanton.”

The center will be open Monday, Wednesday and Friday for treatment, Rooks said. In the future, they hope to expand by adding two more treatment stations and staying open six days a week.

The centers main operation will be providing quality care for dialysis patients, Rook said. Dialysis is a life-sustaining process that cleans waste products from the blood, removes extra fluids and controls the body’s chemistry when a person’s kidneys fail.  Rooks said dialysis basically does what normal healthy kidneys do.

Dialysis patients typically require treatment on an ongoing basis until they receive a kidney transplant, she said. The causes of kidney failure range from diabetes to high blood pressure.

On top of regular dialysis care, the center will also provide a kidney transplant support program, anemia management, nutrition counseling, bone disease management and social worker support.

Rooks said the center already has 25-30 patients interested in receiving treatment at the new facility. In the future, they hope to provide care for 40-60 patients at a time.

For more information on Fresenius Medical Care call 665-4440 or visit Ultracare-dialysis.com.