A 24-hour community house in south Auckland where kidney patients can do their own dialysis is being held up as a model for other parts of the country.
The Kidney Society house, which opened on Thursday, caters for up to 20 Pacific and Maori patients who are trained to administer their own treatment but do not have room for a dialysis machine at home.
Counties Manukau District Health Board is a partner in the community house.
The board's nurse manager for community dialysis, Sally Fox, says it is saving money by keeping patients out of hospital clinics that are already full.
She says community dialysis houses are a good idea for other health boards with Pacific, Maori or rural patients who find it difficult to get to a hospital.
Ms Fox says patients who do their own dialysis at home or in a community house live longer and enjoy better health than those who treated in hospital.
