PROFILE
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“The m ost i m portant thing is accep- tance. You have to accept the fact that y ou need dial y sis to sta y alive. You quit, y ou die.” He knows of patients who “got tired of the m achine” and co mm itted suicide b y deciding to stop following dial y sis treat- m ent. “After so m an y y ears, I a m accusto m ed to this,” sa y s Pilon. “The biggest proble m for a lot of people is transportation.” He is fortunate in that he can drive hi m - self for treat m ents. “A lot of people de- pend on others to get here,” he observes. “I do not co m plain. There is alwa y s so m ebod y worse off than m e.” The Hawkesbur y he m odial y sis unit is a satellite of the Ottawa Hospital he m odi- al y sis service. The clinic has eight patient stations and can acco mm odate two pa- tients per da y in each station for a total of 32 patients. A co m puter connection per m its a spe- cialist in Ottawa to m onitor patients while the y are being treated in Hawkesbur y .
HAWKESBURY | André Pilon looks at the artificial kidne y that has kept hi m alive for the past 18 y ears. “This has beco m e part of my life,” he sa y s. He is connected b y two tubes to a dial y sis m achine, one of eight such devices at the Hawkesbur y and District General he m odi- al y sis unit. The size of a fridge, the m echanical kid- ne y will over the course of about four hours, re m ove toxins fro m his blood. The 68- y ear-old Clarence Creek resident travels to the hospital Monda y , Wednesda y and Frida y . “This is a ver y nice place,” he sa y s of the bright roo m . “It has windows. The last clinic I went to in Ottawa had no windows – it was like a prison.” Since August 18, 1994, Pilon has been re- ceiving dial y sis treat m ent. He is a m ong the esti m ated 1.5 m illion On- tarians who have, or are at risk of develop- ing, kidne y disease. Septe m ber 23, for the first ti m e people in the Hawkesbur y area are co m ing together for the Give the Gift of Life Walk to increase awareness of kidne y disease and organ do- nation, while raising funds for The Kidne y Foundation of Canada. The walks, which will take place in over 40 Ontario co mm unities, raise m one y to help kidne y patients and their fa m ilies through research, advocac y , and support progra m s. You can help people in y our co mm unit y who are affected b y kidne y disease b y par- ticipating or donating to a local walker. Because of the continued support of walkers and donors, The Kidne y Foundation of Canada is the national leader in funding kidne y research in the countr y , having pro- vided over $100 m illion to kidne y research initiatives since it was founded in 1964. The walk will be held at Confederation Park, Sunda y , Septe m ber 23. Registration will be held at 10 a. m .; the walk starts at 11 a. m . For m ore infor m ation, please visit www.kidne y walk.ca or call Craig Dunbar 1-800-387-4474 ext.4562. Acceptance While he is attached to the m achine, Pilon passes the ti m e b y reading local newspa- pers. “I a m a bit of a m aniac for newspapers. I read the m all,” he re m arks. “Being connect to the m achine three ti m es a week has beco m e routine for m e now,” sa y s Pilon who had previousl y worked as a school bus driver after retiring fro m I m - m igration Canada. He has one kidne y . “I had my right kidne y re m oved y ears ago. The one I have works but it does not function well enough.” Pilon al m ost died 18 y ears ago before his kidne y proble m was diagnosed. “I was in such a condition that if I had gone asleep, I could have gone into a co m a or died.” Over the y ears, he has been offered the chance to get a transplant. “I a m not inter- ested,” he sa y s. A new organ could present new challenges. “And there are no guaran- tees of success,” he adds. “You quit, you die”
Photo Richard Mahone y
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