HAMILTON - Dialysis requires a lot from a patient, especially time. The arrival of a new clinic in Hamilton is saving patients hours in their commute to Missoula so they can receive treatment closer to home.
Claire Ferguson — the Bitterroot Health Dialysis Clinic's first patient — had been driving from Hamilton to Missoula for kidney dialysis treatment since 2018.
"Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and it’s four hours for each treatment, and I'm so thankful they have it open here cause that was a long trip to Missoula three days a week," Ferguson said to MTN regarding her appointment schedule.
The hour-long drive sometimes included dicey road conditions with rain, snow and ice. Since the clinic took her on as a patient on August 30, those days for Ferguson are over.
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The clinic is located west of the Bitterroot Hospital at 1270 Westwood Drive and is only a 15-minute drive from where she lives.
"It saves wear and tear on my vehicle and the stress of driving down there with animals crossing the road and drivers that don’t know how to drive in this country," Ferguson jokingly told MTN.
Nurse educator Chris Belangie makes sure his patient is comfy, offering to tuck Ferguson's feet into a blanket, preparing her for the lengthy treatment session. During the process, a mixture pulls the water and toxins out of the patient's blood.
The new clinic has partnered with Bitterroot Health and is anticipating that many commuting patients will be able to do it closer to home, providing some relief to their rigorous appointment schedule.
“We jokingly refer to dialysis as their part-time job because they dedicate so much time to it," Chris Belagie said.
Ferguson's spirit remains high for the new journey ahead that will require less hours on the road.
“Keep a nice, happy outlook on life. It makes life go a lot easier and a lot faster," she said.
