Davita Antelope

The dialysis clinic I go to is called Davita Antelope, it being off of a bigger road named Antelope. There are a bunch of different people there, including different ones on different days.

In the lobby, there's the receptionist's window. Kathy is usually there. She takes care of all the receptionist duties, as well as most of the scheduling and transportation issues for the people that need help getting to the clinic.

In the main room, there are a bunch of patients, techs, and a few nurses. Most of the patients are elderly. There's a couple of people that might be in their 40s or 50s. I'm by far the youngest, so sometimes I do feel a bit out of place. It's really difficult to get to know the other patients or even talk to them at all because the dialysis stations are spaced far enough apart as you would have to talk really loudly to be able to have a conversation while on treatment. I do have to admit that it really bothers me when I see some of the other patients that break their renal diets so easily over and over and over again by eating fast food everyday or asking for cup upon cup of ice or water. This is at the clinic, I can only imagine what they do when they're out on their own. I felt bad eating normal food maybe once a week lol. I am getting better with that though.

Martha, Marlena, Arnecia, and Biba, and Irena are the nurses. I don't think there are any others, but there might be. They all know exactly what they're doing and do their best to make you as comfortable as possible. Martha is always joking around. Marlena loves my crazy socks. Arnecia and Biba are always asking what I've done on my off days and how I've been. Irena is the go-to nurse for questions about the fistula/access.

There's a bunch of techs. I would name them all, but I might leave someone out. All of them are very helpful and very good at their jobs. They're all very friendly and we often talk about movies or whatever random subject is available while they're setting me up or unhooking me from the machine. I don't get to talk to them too much during treatment as they're always busy doing something with one patient or another.

All of the staff is extremely friendly and knowledgeable about the field they're working in. If one of them doesn't know an answer to a question, they will almost immediately look it up or get another person to talk to me who does know the answer. Everyone does their best to make me as comfortable and happy as possible considering the circumstances of why I'm there. I received a paper this week about a program they're running to award a favorite caregiver at the clinic. I have no idea who to vote for because they're all so awesome.

One of Mel's favorite things to say to me is "We all like you, but we really hope we'll be getting rid of you soon." If someone said this under normal circumstances, this might be pretty insulting. In this case, it's a really good thing. They're all hoping that I get to get a transplant soon so I don't have to have dialysis any longer. I really hope that day is soon too. I have a feeling when I'm able to do that, I'll still visit every so often just to say hello, and thank you for all the work and help they've been.

There is one member of the staff I'm not very pleased with however. This would be Kasha, the social worker. Things haven't exactly clicked at all between us since the very first time we talked. She's really nice, of course, but in no way has she done any of her job to help me. The first day I met her, when I asked her if I would be able to work while on dialysis, she said I wouldn't have to, I could just be disabled and not worry about it. I understand she's elderly and used to working with elderly patients, but I'm not! There's nooooooooooooooo way I want to just be labeled disabled and just sit around. If you didn't know I had chronic kidney disease, you couldn't even tell by looking at me. I would love to be able to work. She hasn't been able to relate to me whatsoever, and it seems like she does the least possible to get by. She told me over a month or two ago that social security disability papers were on her desk and she was sending them in so I could get the benefits from it. I thought it was strange since I hadn't applied but I figured since this was her job, she would know much better than me since I had no clue about any of this. Fast forward to this month, I ask about it, and she says I should call Social Security to find out what's going on. I call them and am told that they don't have anything in the system about me at all. The next dialysis day, I tell her this, and she's like "Oh well, I thought that's what that was. You should just apply again. I have no idea what that was on my desk then." WHAT?!?! Isn't this your job!? How am I supposed to know any of this if the person I'm supposed to find out from has no idea what she's doing? I did apply online and through some paperwork in the next few days, but that's a ton of wasted time, and now I have to wait through the whole process again. It was just very frustrating and I think it would help a lot to have a real social worker to help me through that process as well as the general gist of having to deal with dialysis.

The other patients are mostly elderly like I've said, but they're all kinds of different people. Some are usually happy, some are grumpy, some are extremely loud and complaining, some are silent and don't make a peep. It can be interesting, and some might be interesting to talk to if I ever get a chance. I have to admit I really feel out of place though. I've read online that maybe dealing with it so well at a young age might provide encouragement for the other patients but honestly, I'm not really sure how I'm supposed to deal with everything. I'm not really sure how to help myself, much less the other people. I do my best to stay positive and in good spirits, although it's not easy sometimes.

Overall, most of the people, especially the staff, are all really nice, and having such a good group at the clinic helps tremendously. The techs and nurses are a real blessing from God, and I hope they realize how much their attitudes, knowledge, and overall helpfulness means to the patients.