Sandhills Regional Medical Center (SHRMC) has earned The Joint Commission’s End Stage Renal Disease Specialty Certification, making it only the fourth hospital in the country to receive this award.

Sandhills Regional underwent a rigorous on-site survey in March, in which a team of Joint Commission expert surveyors evaluated its in-house dialysis unit for compliance with standards of care specific to the needs of patients and families. This included infection prevention and control, leadership and medication management.

The dialysis unit at Sandhills Regional is operated by Southeast Acute Services (SAS), a company that specializes exclusively in acute, in-patient renal care.

“Our dialysis unit is unique in that it is located inside the intensive care unit, rather than operating on its own floor,” said Lesa Greene, director of dialysis services for Southeast Acute Services. “We feel that this boosts the capability of the hospital to provide quality critical care to its patients.”

“SHRMC is one of our most valued partners, and we are very proud that this unit was chosen to receive this prestigious award,” said Ken Holt, SAS managing partner. “Our goal is to provide the highest quality care to the entire community on behalf of SHRMC. Receiving the ESRD Specialty Certification will ensure our patients that they are in good hands.”

The nurses of SAS are highly experienced and certified in hemodialysis, he said. “The same standards we use in our hiring process are used in every aspect of our operations,” Holt said.

This end stage renal disease accreditation is a great reward for a service that’s been here for 22 years, said Luiz Nascimento, M.D., chief of staff for Sandhills Regional and board certified in nephrology and internal medicine.

“We introduced dialysis in Richmond County and in Anson County, and we performed the first hemodialysis in Moore County,” Nascimento said. “This award is a culmination of years of experience and great work.”

Joint Commission accreditation provides Sandhills Regional with a framework to take the organization to the next level and helps create a culture of excellence, said Mike McNair, Sandhills Regional’s CEO. “With Joint Commission certification, we are making a significant investment in quality on a day-to-day basis from the top down. This is a major step toward maintaining excellence and continually improving the care we provide,” McNair said.

In achieving this certification, Sandhills Regional has demonstrated its commitment to the highest level of care for its patients with end stage renal disease, said Jean Range, executive director of Disease-Specific Certification of The Joint Commission.

“Certification is a voluntary process and I commend Sandhills Regional for successfully undertaking this challenge to elevate its standard of care and instill confidence in the community it serves,” Range said.

Of the four hospitals with this accreditation, Sandhills Regional — the smallest — is the second one in North Carolina, joining Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, a teaching hospital. The other two are Ivinson Memorial in Wyoming, which has an outpatient unit, and Hackensack University Medical in New Jersey, which is a teaching hospital.

End Stage Renal Disease is when the kidneys stop working well enough for a person to live without dialysis or a transplant. This kind of kidney failure is permanent and is mostly caused by diabetes or high blood pressure.

More than 8 million Americans have diabetes, and approximately 50 million Americans have hypertension.

Sandhills Regional Medical Center is owned by Health Management Associates of Naples, Fla. Formerly Hamlet Hospital, Sandhills Regional Medical Center has provided Richmond County with uninterrupted health care since 1915.

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