One small step for COMCI, a great leap forward for Metro Cagayan de Oro
One of Cagayan de Oro City’s most venerable medical institutions has just taken the first small step aimed at making the capital city of Northern Mindanao the leading center for kidney dialysis services in the region.
Cagayan de Oro Medical Center, Inc. (COMCI) has taken its first delivery of Fresenius dialysis machines which its top management aims to increase to 100 units by the end of 2024.
“With the installation of this first batch of Fresenius dialysis machines, we have modernized our operations to make kidney dialysis services more convenient, less stressful and more affordable for our patients,” said Ferdinand Floirendo, COMCI President and Chief Executive Officer.
The number of deaths caused by renal failure and other kidney related diseases in the Philippines have been steadily trending upward from 18,089 (5 yr. average 2003-2007) & 2008; 19,805 (2004-2008) & 2009; to 20,964 (2005-2009) & 2010, doubling further to 39,880 fatalities due to diabetes mellitus in 2020.
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis has been similarly trending upwards from 11, 015 (5 yr. average 2003-2007) & 2008; to 12, 257 (2005-2009) & 2010.
Latest data from the Cagayan de Oro City Health Office shows a similar trend: Diabetes mellitus was the sixth leading cause of mortality, rising from 322 deaths and 47.2% rate (5 yr. average 2013-2017) & 2018; to 344 and 48.28% rate (2016-2020) & 2021.
“These figures only serve to emphasize the need for more kidney dialysis services in the city and region to address the growing number of cases,” Floirendo stressed. “Thus, COMCI seeks to rise to the challenge and put in 100 units by the end of the year.”
To make the services accessible to the less fortunate sectors of the populace, COMCI will be devoting a quarter of this available capacity to indigent patients, he added.
The Fresenius 4008 S Next Gen dialysis machine platform is made in Germany by Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA, a German healthcare company which provides kidney dialysis services through a network of 4,171 outpatient dialysis centers, serving 345,425 patients. The company primarily treats end-stage renal disease (ESRD), which requires patients to undergo dialysis 3 times per week for the rest of their lives.
As of the end of December, 2022, there were over 1,000 Fresenius dialysis machines operating in 65 hospitals and clinics all over Mindanao, with COMCI having the same 4008 S Next Gen machines which makes up 85% of the installed Fresenius dialysis machines in the region, enabling COMCI to benefit further from economies of scale inherent in the most prevalent model’s user base.
Operational efficiency
Hemodialysis involves a large number of demanding manual operations all around the hemodialysis machine. The ergonomic design and the logical operating structure of The Next Generation 4008S allows easy handling and fast and intuitive programming of the treatment parameters.
Important treatment values are represented graphically on the 10.4” TFT-LCD monitor, which supports easy comprehension of the ongoing treatment, and provides a fast overview of the treatment history. The Blood Pressure Monitor (BPM) is fully integrated, which further simplifies handling for the therapy providers.
In combination with the Therapy Data Management System (TDMS), daily dialysis practice can now be organized in a more effective and efficient manner taking full advantage of an online data acquisition and management tool.
Floirendo’s recommended acquisition of the new machines was unanimously approved by the COMCI Board when projected income for the new units showed a 285 percent improvement monthly and annually over its existing machines.
“Even better for patients buffeted by raging inflation, the new machines enables COMCI to extend an even higher level of dialysis services with no price increase from last year, which would have been inevitable had it continued using the previous brand of machines,” Floirendo noted.
However, COMCI is eyeing the more advanced Fresenius 5008 S On Line HDF model for its next deliveries to further elevate the standards of its kidney dialysis services.
Widely recognized as the cutting edge in Hemodiafiltration, the Fresenius 5008 S Online features a fully automated Blood Pressure Monitor (BPM*) that’s fully automated and non-invasive; a Blood Temperature Monitor (BTM*) that works towards hemodynamic stability during dialysis besides providing recirculation measurements; the availability of VAM and VenAcc* as additional features for the early detection of venous needle dislodgement; and availability of HD, HighVolumeHDF*(pre/post), HF (pre/post), and Single needle double pump (HD/HDF), among others.
With a global headquarters in Bad Homburg vor der Höhe, Germany, and a North American headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts, Fresenius Medical Care has a 38% market share of the dialysis market in the United States. It also operates 42 production sites, the largest of which are in the U.S., Germany, and Japan.
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