New dialysis center opens

Mike McCoy photo Linda Newell, center, is shown undergoing dialysis at newly opened Davita Dexter Dialysis. Also shown are Cody Baker, left, patient care tech, and La Tisha Washington, facility administrator. Newell was the first patient at Dexter Dialysis which opened Monday morning.

DaVita Dexter Dialysis opened their doors to patients Monday morning. The new dialysis center is located at 2010 N. Outer Rd. in Dexter, just west of the old Hickory House Service Station. The first dialysis patient was Linda Newell of Dexter.

Newell has been going to the dialysis center in Poplar Bluff for a little over a year. The opening of the new facility in Dexter will be both a time and money saver, she said.

The facility is an eight-station center for dialysis and is open on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays," according to Gina Stateler, who serves as Regional Operations Director for DaVita Dialysis.

The center is currently serving only commercial insurance patients, said Nancy Perkins, administrative assistant with Devita. The facility must be open and available for inspection before being certified for Medicaid and Medicare, Perkins stated.

Stateler said the certification process usually takes "about two to three months."

The facilty administrator is La Tisha Washington. Construction on the 3,800 square feet building began in March.

DaVita Dialysis provides dialysis services for those diagnosed with chronic kidney failure, a condition also known as chronic kidney disease (CKD). The company has over 1,400 outpatient dialysis facilities and acute units in over 700 hospitals, located in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Approximately 110,000 patients are served at their centers.

In the Bootheel, Davita has centers in both Poplar Bluff and Kennett as well as Dexter.