A new dialysis clinic in the northern suburbs will mean 120 people with kidney problems can be treated closer to where they live.

WA Health Minister Jim McGinty said the $2.2million Gambro Stirling Renal Dialysis Unit would reduce travel time for patients and minimise the disruption to their lives caused by dialysis.

“This modern new facility will make an enormous difference to the lives of local renal patients,” Mr McGinty said.

“Satellite units such as this, take people out of the hospital environment and back into the community.

“People who have renal problems have to undergo dialysis between three and six times a week, for approximately six hours each time.

“We want dialysis patients to have the same opportunities as the rest of us to enable them to work and spend time with their families, and these units are a step in that direction.

“This is the second satellite unit to open this year, with the first opening in Cannington in March.”

The majority of the patients starting at the clinic this month will transfer from Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, with others from Royal Perth and Shenton Park expected to access the service.

The Shenton Park dialysis unit will be phased out of use and will close within a year.

The new clinic will open at 6.30am and close at 10.30pm six days a week, giving patients greater flexibility to fit dialysis in around other commitments. Planning is also under way for a 24-hour service in the future.

The Minister said the unit was a continuation of the successful partnership between the Department of Health and private company Gambro Healthcare, which also operated the Cannington clinic.

“The new clinic will reduce pressure on hospital dialysis units and is fitted with 24 dialysis chairs,” he said.

“It will add 20 chairs to the metropolitan area’s dialysis capacity with four existing chairs being transferred from Cannington.

“The unit at Cannington will now have 20 chairs. The unit has already surpassed expectations of demand from the community. It was originally projected that Cannington would serve up to 64 patients by its third year of service, but after just six months they are already catering for 80 patients.”

In 2003, 756 Western Australians required regular dialysis. It is estimated that by 2013 this number will have grown by 457 people to 1,213.

Satellite services provide these patients with a convenient way to dialyse. The services also reduce the cost to the taxpayer - satellite dialysis treatment is 30 per cent more cost effective than hospital dialysis.

Gambro Healthcare is one of the world’s leading providers of renal care services. The company operates in 15 countries and treats some 13,000 patients in more than
160 clinics.

The Stirling dialysis unit is located at the corner of Puccini Crescent and Civic Place, close to the Stirling train stations, and on a bus route.

“The Carpenter Government is using our strong economy to deliver better services for all Western Australians,” Mr McGinty said.