HALIFAX -- The Nova Scotia government has approved $7.46 million to expand dialysis care at the Dartmouth General Hospital.
There are currently 10 dialysis chairs at the hospital, and the expansion project will bring that number to 16.
Health Minister Randy Delorey says as a result, an additional 36 patients will be able to be treated in Dartmouth each week, bringing the total to close to 100 patients.
The province is building or expanding dialysis units in six communities, including Dartmouth, Halifax, Kentville, Digby, Bridgewater and Glace Bay.
The dialysis unit at the Dartmouth General will be closed until construction is finished in about a year.
Patients who had been receiving dialysis in Dartmouth are now receiving care at the Halifax Infirmary and Victoria General sites of the QEII Health Sciences Centre.
Dialysis is a treatment for people with kidney disease or kidney failure that removes waste, salt and extra water from their blood.
This report by the Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2019.
