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http://www.omniture.com --> Sections Home Page Local News AP News Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Since We Asked Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Readers Choice 2006 Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Our Valley Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend August 16, 2006 Marcia Robison of White City rests while a kidney dialysis machine cleanses her blood at Rogue Valley Dialysis Services. She comes to the clinic three times a week for three to four hours at a time. (Mail Tribune / Jim Craven) The long wait Dialysis center officials fear a delay in needed construction could have an ill effect on patients By Bill kettler Mail Tribune Three times a week Marcia Robison has an appointment she must keep to stay alive. Robison's kidneys no longer function. The White City woman comes to Medford to have waste removed from her blood at Rogue Valley Dialysis Services. She sits quietly for three or four hours while the machine does its work, reading, watching television, talking on the phone, sometimes napping. "It leaves you tired when you're done," she says. "You're really exhausted." There are 21 chairs in the dialysis unit, and every one is filled six days a week. The building was designed to accommodate three shifts of patients, but managers have added a fourth to handle the growing number of people with kidney problems. Some patients must start their treatments as early as 5 a.m. Others don't finish until 11 p.m. Some patients are in their 20s; the oldest is 94. The median age is about 60. Many have to rearrange their lives to come for dialysis when a chair becomes available, said Kim Roby, operations manager for the dialysis center. Advertisement "We have a woman who brings her kid here because there's nowhere else for her to take him," Roby said. Plans to build a new dialysis center with 36 chairs took a step sideways July 30 when the Medford Planning Commission sent the proposal back to the city's Site Plan and Architectural Commission for consideration. Dialysis center managers fear the delay could postpone construction until spring if they don't get approval before winter rains set in. Some people may have to travel to Grants Pass for dialysis if patient volume continues to grow as it has in the past, said Paula Schranz, corporate administrator for Renal Care Consultants, the dialysis center's parent company. Schranz said in the years since 2000, the number of dialysis treatments per month has grown 39 percent and the number of patients has increased 36 percent (about 8 percent per year). Plans for the new dialysis center were submitted as part of a planned unit development proposed by Asante Health System for a 16.6-acre parcel at the corner of State Street and Golf View Drive. In most development projects, landscape and design factors are considered first by the city's Site Plan and Architectural Commission and then the proposal is passed on to the Planning Commission for final approval. The dialysis center building was submitted for approval as part of the larger PUD in what is known as a "consolidated" application. Applicants hoped the consolidated application would speed up the approval process and give them more time to build this fall, said Justin Hurley, real estate manager for Asante. u City staff encouraged the developers to submit a consolidated application as the best way to gain swift approval, but could not guarantee that the Planning Commission would approve it, said project developer Dennis Hoffbuhr. City statutes give the commission the authority to approve consolidated applications, but it chose to send the project back for a site plan review. "The problem for us is that we followed everything we were supposed to do to a T," Hurley said. Norm Nelson, a member of the Planning Commission, said he could not talk about the application because it is still in deliberation. The Site Plan and Architectural Commission will consider it at its meeting at noon Friday in the City Council chambers. As long as the dialysis center operates above capacity, new patients will have to be fit in whenever a time comes open, said Schranz, the clinic administrator. "It's just too sad," she said. "Our patients are always coming in and asking, 'What's the latest news (on the new building).'" Rob Scott, Medford planning director, said the Planning Commission understands the health issues, but must handle each application the same way. "We process 300 applications every year," he said. "Everybody wants to be first in line." Bill Sowerbutts of Gold Hill, at 86 one of the oldest dialysis patients, had a different opinion. "I think if some of those people on the Planning Commission had people coming in (for dialysis) they would understand," he said. Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492 or e-mail: [email protected] Advertisement Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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