It appears to be challenging times for people with kidney issues, especially with restrictions on hospital appointments, save for emergencies that require hospital remedy. Whether it is home-based therapy, like counseling from your phone or phone therapy through calls or text messages to your doctor for consultation, it is evident that the emergence of COVID-19 has fueled the need for less face-to-face contact with therapists. With the outbreak of COVID-19, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Centers for disease control and prevention have ensured that dialysis patients can take their treatment during this precarious time.

On the flip side, the reevaluation of the health care system has led to novel ways that you can employ to manage your health as you do your dialysis or post-surgery care. The latest study on Dialysis modality and survival has proven that patients who undergo dialysis at home have better outcomes than patients who make routine trips to health care centers. According to experts, COVID-19 outbreaks across hemodialysis facilities have placed patients, their families, and health care workers at risk.

If you recently did the surgery, you must continue to follow the guidelines set to prevent infection like, avoiding large crowds and practicing social distancing. You may also need to discuss plans for your follow-up visits and care as well as limiting visitors in your home after your surgery. With fewer health facility visits and a better ability to adhere to social distancing guidelines, home-based dialysis has a clear advantage. This information is in the data relating to COVID-19 infection collected by the United Kingdom Renal Registry and the Ontario Renal Network. Data from the Ontario Renal Network reveals that the rate of increase in COVID-19 positivity among patients on center-based hemodialysis was threefold more than those receiving home dialysis. Data from the United States is still pending.