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New dialysis centre slated for North Kamloops

Interior Health and the BC Renal Agency announced plans for a kidney-care centre - called a community-dialysis unit - in North Kamloops

There will be a new option for Kamloops and area kidney patients next year.

Interior Health and the BC Renal Agency announced last week plans for a kidney-care centre - called a community-dialysis unit - in North Kamloops.

"Current and future patients in Kamloops and the surrounding area will benefit from dialysis services as close to home as possible," said Kamloops-North Thompson Liberal MLA Terry Lake.

"The introduction of a dialysis unit in the community is great news."

The centre will be funded by the BC Renal Agency and operated by Interior Health.

While a precise location has yet to be set, the plan is for the centre to be somewhere central on the North Shore.

It's slated to feature eight dialysis stations, plus space for additional stations to meet potential future need.

The centre will encourage and educate patients to become more independent with their treatment.

"We are really excited to be working with the BC Renal Agency to provide this specialized service in the community," said Norman Embree, Interior Health's board chair.

"The self-management model will help patients live as independent and healthy a life as possible - something we are always striving to achieve."

A similar kidney-treatment centre in Penticton received a BC Patient Safety and Quality Council award in 2010.

– Kamloops This Week