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Last Updated 6/16/19
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Dialysis technicians and technologists spend more time with dialysis patients than any other health care professionals.  There are more dialysis technicians/technologists than nephrology nurses and nephrologists combined.

In most dialysis facilities, dialysis technicians perform dialysis treatments under the supervision of a registered nurse. Duties include pretreatment assessment, cannulation, initiation of treatment, treatment monitoring, discontinuation of treatment, and post-treatment assessment.

Dialysis technologists specialize in the technical operations of a dialysis facility. Duties include dialysis equipment maintenance and repair, water treatment monitoring, dialyzer reprocessing, and facility safety issues. See the Renal Career Fact Sheet for Dialysis Technologists from the National Kidney Foundation.

This list of educational and informational resources will be continually expanded. Please notify RenalWEB of your suggestions and ideas for this page.

Warning:  Changes should never be made in a patient's treatment or care based solely on the information found here.  Every patient has unique healthcare concerns and considerations and all these factors must all be taken into account before any changes can be safely made.  All medical and therapeutic decisions must come from a qualified health care provider.  Read RenalWEB's Legal Disclaimer before proceeding.

  NEWS
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Factors Influencing Survival Time of Hemodialysis Patients; Time to Event Analysis Using Parametric Models: a Cohort Study - Free, Open Access Article from BMC Nephrology. - June 11, 2019

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Association between Serum Calcium Levels and Prognosis, Hematoma Volume, and Onset of Cerebral Hemorrhage in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis - Free, Open Access article from BMC Nephrology. - June 7, 2019
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The Status of Provision of Standard Outpatient Dialysis for US Undocumented Immigrants with ESKD - Free, full-text, Published Ahead of Print CJASN perspective piece. - June 7, 2019

"Many deaths, unnecessary suffering & valueless healthcare utilization can be prevented." - Lilia Cervantes
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Proteins Adsorbed to a Polysulfone Hemodialysis Membrane under Heparin and Citrate Anticoagulation Regimens - Accepted Article abstract from Artificial Organs. - June 4, 2019
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Baxter Recalls Some Lots of Revaclear Dialyzers Due to Leaks - Article from Healio. - June 3, 2019
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FDA Product Recall Notices: - May 31, 2019 - June 2, 2019
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Dosing Continuous Renal Replacement Therapies (CRRT): What is Enough? - Posting from the Renal Fellow Network blog. - May 31, 2019
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The Course of Hematocrit Value along the Length of a Dialyzer's Fiber: Hemoconcentration Modeling and Validation Methods - OnlineFirst abstract from the International Journal of Artificial Organs. - May 23, 2019
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Haemodialysis Patients' Perceptions of Their Experience, Control and Knowledge of Fluid Management - Free, Full-Text Article from Journal of Renal Care. - May 21, 2019
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Independent Effect of Haemodialysis Session Frequency and Duration on Survival in Non-Indigenous Australians on Haemodialysis - Accepted Article abstract from Nephrology. - May 21, 2019
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Inadvertently High Dialysate Magnesium Causing Weakness and Nausea in Hemodialysis Patients - Early View abstracts from Hemodialysis International. - May 21, 2019
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Transitioning from Peritoneal Dialysis to Hemodialysis - Recent findings from AdvancingDialysis.org (sponsored content). - February 7, 2019
blue ball Dialysis news stories from Yahoo!  Continually Updated!
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  WEB RESOURCES
blue ball Latest Scientific Journal Articles on Dialysis Technology
Latest Issue of Biomedical Instrumentation & Technology (BI&T) Journal - The Official Journal of the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
Future Horizons - special publication from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) dedicated to examining the future of medical technology and the healthcare profession
Dictionary of over 70,000 medical, pharmaceutical, biomedical & healthcare acronyms and abbreviations from the MediLexicon web site
National Surveillance System for Health Care Workers (NaSH) (pdf) from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
Chemical Reactivity Hazards from the Occupational Safety & Health Administration web site
Chlorine - from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) - September 2006
Eleven Keys to Designing Error-Resistant Medical Device from the Medical Device and Diagnostic Industry web site - May 2002
European Medical Device Technology web site
Exposure to Stress: Occupational Hazards in Hospitals - (pdf) release from the NIOSH/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - July 2008
blue ball FDA-Cleared Sterilants and High Level Disinfectants with General Claims for Processing Reusable Medical and Dental Devices from the FDA's Medical Devices - March 2015
Healthcare Technology Management Collection, 2014 Update from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) web site
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HIPAA Training Video from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
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Incivility, Bullying, and Workplace Violence - position statement from the American Nurses Association. - July 2015
Inspection of Medical Device Manufacturers - from the U. S. Food and Drug Administration web site - June 2006
Job Safety and Health: It's the Law and Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo ¡Es la Ley! (pdf) from the Occupational Safety & Health Administration web site
NANT Presentations - from the National Association of Nephrology Technicians/Technologists
NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) web site
OSHA Unveils New Webpage for Spanish-Speaking Employers and Workers
Promoting Healthcare Workplace Excellence (pdf format requires Adobe Acrobat Reader) from the Health Care Workforce Policy Advisory Committee Georgia Department of Community Health - spring 2002
Renal Data Extraction and Referencing (RenDER) System - new online data querying application accessible through the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) - USRDS Presentations & Posters, 2016 Researcher's Guide and the 2018 USRDS annual report - from the United States Renal Data System (USRDS) web site
blue ball Risk Management - podcast from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) web site
TOXMAP - Environmental Health e-Maps from the U.S. National Library of Medicine web site
blue ball Worker Safety in Hospitals Caring for our Caregivers - from OSHA web site
blue ball Workplace Violence Prevention Course for Nurses - from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
blue ball Workplace Violence Prevention Resources - from the The Joint Commission
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  ORGANIZATIONS
blue ball American Society for Artificial Internal Organs (ASAIO) web site
Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) web site
Canadian Association of Nephrology Nurses and Technologists web site
ECRI web site for healthcare technology assessment
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) web site

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) web site,  Medical Devices ,  Medical Device Reporting (MDR)

Green Dialysis web site
Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) Transparency web site
International Health Care Worker Safety Center (also EPINet) web site
International Society for Performance Improvement web site
The National Academies web site (National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, National Research Council)
National Association for Nephrology Technicians/Technologists (NANT) web site
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) web site
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) web site
National Kidney Foundation (NKF) web site - NKF Council of Nephrology Nurses and Technicians

National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse web site
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) web site - Topics: Bloodborne Pathogens,  Needlestick Injuries
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  ESSENTIALS AND CLASSICS
A Study Guide for Dialysis Technologists 5th ed. - Book from the National Association for Nephrology Technicians/Technologists (NANT) web site
AAMI Dialysis Standards Collection 2015 edition - This comprehensive dialysis collection includes EVERY CURRENT AAMI HEMODIALYSIS standard and guidance document.

A Practicum for Healthcare Technology Management - 2017 - This textbook is the go to resource for new and seasoned biomedical professionals. It covers everything from The Joint Commission accreditation process and managing medical device safety to human factors engineering and evidence-based medical equipment maintenance management. Based on Les Atles' best-selling "A Practicum for Biomedical Engineering and Technology Management" and written by experts in the profession.
Guidelines for Environmental Infection Control in Health-Care Facilities from the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report web site
Handbook of Dialysis Fifth Edition by John T Daugirdas MD, Peter G Blake MB, FRCPC, FRCPI, Todd S Ing MD
Book: Review of Hemodialysis for Nurses and Dialysis Personnel by Gutch, Corea, and Stoner from amazon.com
ANNA Publications from the American Nephrology Nurses Association web site
NANT Publications from the National Association of Nephrology Technicians/ Technologists web site
Hemodialysis Dose and Adequacy from the National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NKUDIC) web site
NLM MEDLINE plus Health Information for Kidneys and Urinary System
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  HEMODIALYSIS MACHINES
For Manufacturers and CDRH Reviewers - Guidance for the Content of Premarket Notifications for Hemodialysis Delivery Systems from the FDA's Medical Devices - August 1998/ July 2000
blue ball Quality of dialysis fluid for hemodialysis and related therapies, 2014 - from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
blue ball Guidance for the preparation and quality management of fluids for hemodialysis and related therapies, 2014 - from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
Concentrates for hemodialysis, 2014 - from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
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  WATER TREATMENT
AAMI Dialysis Standards Collection 2015 edition - This comprehensive dialysis collection includes EVERY CURRENT AAMI HEMODIALYSIS standard and guidance document.
2014 Dialysis Water and Dialysate Recommendations: A User Guide - a side-by-side comparison of the CMS regulations and interpretive guidance for the Condition of Water and Dialysate Quality and the section related to water and dialysate from the Condition of Care at Home with the suite of ISO Standards that have been adopted as replacement for ANSI/AAMI RD52:2004 - from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
A Surveyor’s Perspective: Water Quality for Hemodialysis (3-page pdf) from Hemodialysis Horizons
blue ball Dialysis Water Treatment System from the Northwest Renal Network
blue ball Ultrapure Dialysate for hemodialysis, 2011 from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
Water for hemodialysis and related therapies, 2014 from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
blue ball Water testing methodologies, 2014 from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
blue ball Water for hemodialysis and related therapies, 2014 from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI)
EPA Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water web site
For manufacturers - Guidance for the Content of Premarket Notifications for Water Purification Components and Systems for Hemodialysis (pdf) from the FDA's Medical Devices - May 30, 1997
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  REUSE AND REPROCESSING
Sterilants and High Level Disinfectants Cleared by FDA
AAMI Dialysis Standards Collection 2015 edition - This comprehensive dialysis collection includes EVERY CURRENT AAMI HEMODIALYSIS standard and guidance document.
Reprocessing of hemodialyzers, 2008 - (consolidated text of 2002 edition and March 2003 amendment) - This book can be ordered from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) web site
Glutaraldehyde - from the CDC National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
Antimicrobial Chemical/Registration Number Indexes from the EPA web site
ReNews. is a newsletter about dialyzer reprocessing and related topics published twice yearly by Minntech Renal Systems. Copies of recent issues are available for download as Acrobat PDF files. (From the Medivators web site)
K/DOQI™ Guideline 5. Hemodialysis Membranes from the American Journal of Kidney Disease
A publication "What you should know about dialyzer reuse" (pdf format requires Adobe Acrobat reader) available from the NKF
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  ELECTRONICS
60601-1, 3rd Edition, Medical electrical equipment, Part 1 - Association for Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) web site.
Electronic Records; Electronic Signatures — Scope and Application - Availability from the U.S. Department Of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - 2015
Electromagnetic Compatibility - EMC from the FDA's Radiation-Emitting Products
FDA/CDRH Recommendations for EMC/EMI in Healthcare Facilities from the FDA's Radiation-Emitting Products
General Principles of Software Validation; Final Guidance for Industry and FDA Staff from the U.S. Department Of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - January 11, 2002
Home Use Devices Booklet: How to Prepare for and Handle Power Outages for Medical Devices that Require Electricity - 16-page pdf file from the FDA. - May 2011
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  PUBMED SEARCHES (National Library of Medicine's MEDLINE Database)
PubMed Search Tool of the National Library Of Medicine's MEDLINE Database (allows you to search through over 11 million indexed articles). Due to copyright laws, only the abstracts (summaries) of the articles are usually listed. Some articles appear in full text on the publishers' web sites that are linked to PubMed. This page provides an Overview of PubMed.
dialysis technician articles   Continually Updated!
dialysis equipment articles   Continually Updated!
water treatment and dialysis articles   Continually Updated!
dialyzer reprocessing -  heat reuse  articles   Continually Updated!
MEDLINE / Pubmed Information from the National Library of Medicine
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  SCHOOLS AND ACCREDITATION

Core Curriculum for the Dialysis Technician - A Comprehensive Review of Hemodialysis: Fifth Edition - Developed by the Medical Education Institute, Inc., in cooperation with the National Association of Nephrology Technicians/Technologists (NANT).

ESRD Conditions for Coverage: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Patient Care Technicians - April 2010 - 5-page pdf from The Renal Network.
Patient Care Tech Training/Certification Options - 2-page pdf from The Renal Network.
Board of Nephrology Examiners, Inc. Nursing and Technology (BONENT) Examinations are given by Applied Measurement Professionals, Inc. (AMP). Fact Sheet on BONENT Examinations.
National Nephrology Certification Organization (NNCO) Certification Examinations in Clinical Nephrology Technology and Biomedical Nephrology Technology are given by the Professional Testing Corporation. Schedule for NNCO Testing.
The Nephrology Nursing Certification Commission (NNCC) offers the Certification for Clinical Hemodialysis Technicians (CCHT).
Dialysis Technician Requirements by State
A Career in Biomedical Equipment Technology Brochure (pdf) from the Association for Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) web site
Better Water, Inc. training facility in Smyrna, TN
BMET Study Guide: Preparing for Certification and Sharpening Your Skills - from the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation
Body Weight - Body Water (pdf) - from Hemodialysis, Inc.
The Water Solution Package: On-line Water Training & Information Support Site - (pdf) Mar Cor Purification’s Training Course for Hemodialysis Water Systems
Online courses for Medical Equipment Technology: Application, Support and Management - from the University of Vermont
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  K/DOQI™ -  Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative ( pronounced "kay DOE key" )

K/ DOQI Main Page on the National Kidney Foundation web site
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  DISCUSSION FORUMS
Dialysis Technical Forum - Professional Discussion Forum for Technical Issues. Ask questions on water systems, electronics, troubleshooting, reuse, etc.
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  PRODUCTS
Medivators Renal Systems Services & Support - Support products and services for dialyzer reprocessing programs
Mar Cor Purification web site
Reprocessing Products Corporation
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  UPCOMING EVENTS
Listing of National Association of Nephrology Technicians/Technologists (NANT) Meetings
Listing of local ESRD Network Annual Meetings
Listing of Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) Seminars
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  RELATED TOPICS
Guidelines for Preventing Workplace Violence for Health Care and Social Service Workers (pdf format requires Adobe Acrobat Reader) from OSHA web site
Biomedical Engineering web sites - Yahoo search
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  INPUT / SUGGESTIONS
E-mail to RenalWEB on the Technician Issues
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