[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 102 (Tuesday, July 10, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4820-S4821]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        NORTHWEST KIDNEY CENTERS

 Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I wish to congratulate Northwest 
Kidney Centers on its 50th anniversary and to commemorate the 
organization's service and dedication to kidney patients in my home 
State of Washington.
  In 1960, Dr. Belding Scribner, a University of Washington researcher, 
created the Teflon shunt, a medical device that allowed patients 
suffering from kidney disease access to ongoing dialysis treatments. 
This invention paved the way for the creation of the Northwest Kidney 
Centers, the first out-of-hospital dialysis organization in the world.
  Since opening its doors on January 8, 1962, the Northwest Kidney 
Centers has grown into a national leader in the field of patient care, 
education, research, and prevention. It is now the largest community-
based, nonprofit dialysis provider in the country--providing 
approximately 25 percent of Washington State's dialysis patients in 14 
centers and 12 local hospitals in King and Clallam Counties. Last year 
Northwest Kidney Centers served nearly 1,500 patients and trained and 
supervised 200 patients in self-treatment at

[[Page S4821]]

home. All together, the organization provided 226,000 dialysis 
treatments in our home State.
  The organization regularly outperforms the Nation in clinical 
quality, with higher survival rates, more kidney transplants, and lower 
hospitalization rates. Moreover, Northwest Kidney Centers founded and 
still operates the Nation's first nonhospital retail pharmacy 
specializing in medications for kidney patients. The organization also 
manages unique special care units for very frail patients, thus 
avoiding hospitalizations and reducing costs.
  Northwest Kidney Centers is a shining example of what it means to be 
a community-based organization. Each year Northwest Kidney Centers 
invests millions of dollars in the community with a variety of 
programs: charity care and uncompensated dialysis; training of kidney 
physicians; and services for predialysis patients and transplant 
recipients.
  Finally, as we celebrate this historic 50-year milestone, I would 
like to recognize the entire Northwest Kidney Centers community--
patients, staff, donors, supporters, and volunteers--for their 
dedication and commitment to improving the lives of kidney patients in 
our State. I salute them for their remarkable achievements and 
successes and look forward to the next 50 years of outstanding service 
and patient care.

                          ____________________