Bridge of Life Launches New Missions in Telehealth, Hand Hygiene and Primary Care

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May 13, 2015, 06:13 ET

DENVER, May 13, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc. (NYSE: DVA), a leading provider of kidney care and health care services, today announced that Bridge of Life (BOL), the primary program of DaVita Village Trust, completed three new missions to Belize, Haiti and Vietnam to treat patients and assess conditions for future missions.

"Providing telehealth, hand hygiene and primary care services to underserved communities allows us to expand our reach internationally and to deepen our impact," said Lori Vaclavik, executive director of DaVita Village Trust. "We are committed to sustainability by understanding the unique needs of each community and fostering on-going relationships with our in-country partners."

Belize
BOL launched its first telehealth program with the renal units at La Loma Adventist Hospital and Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH) in Belize. Belize does not currently have any nephrologists practicing within the country. Dr. Ronald Hyde, a nephrologist at the Southwest Kidney Institute in Phoenix who has been treating patients in Belize, will now be able to remotely treat 28 patients weekly from Arizona. He was previously able to treat these patients only four times a year.

KHMH currently has five dialysis machines and 16 patients at its dialysis unit. La Loma has 14 patients who dialyze three times per week. BOL plans to launch the telehealth program in other developing countries in need of nephrologists as well as seek out new partnerships to help develop the program.

Haiti
BOL launched its first hand hygiene product protocol with the help of 62 clinicians and donations made by GOJO Purell. More than 7,750 people were educated at two hospitals and one clinic – Hôpital de la Paix in Port au Prince, Hôpital St. Marc in the Artibonite Department of St. Marc and GHESKIO in Port-Au-Prince.

"Many lives will be impacted by the use of hand sanitizers and washing dispensers in our health wards," said Claudia Thomas Riché with GHESKIO. "It is critical to make practice of hand hygiene in order to reduce germ transmission between patients and health care providers. Lives can be saved by basic hygiene that most of us take for granted."

Vietnam
For the first time, BOL partnered with Project Vietnam Foundation to provide surgical and primary care in two Vietnam hospitals. 17 volunteers, including HealthCare Partners teammates, treated patients at Hospital 175 in Saigon and Hospital Benh Vien Da Khoa in Can Tho.

During the two-week mission,

70 young children with cleft lip/palate received corrective operations;
2,503 patients received comprehensive care, including vision care and screenings for diabetes and anemia;
814 children received dental care which included oral hygiene education;
264 patients were provided with audiological evaluations; and
29 hearing aids were dispensed.

For more information about Bridge of Life, please visit DaVitaVillageTrust.org.

About Bridge of Life
DaVita Village Trust (DVT) is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded by DaVita HealthCare Partners. Bridge of Life (BOL), the primary program of DVT, improves access to primary care and dialysis treatment in underserved communities around the world while also focusing on prevention of kidney disease through early-detection testing and education. BOL serves thousands of men, women and children through four impact areas: kidney care, primary care, education and prevention and medically supported camps for kids. In 2015, BOL will complete 47 medical missions, 32 chronic kidney disease (CKD) screening events, 15 medical camps for kids and impact over 9,000 lives in the United States and abroad. For more information, please visit DaVitaVillageTrust.org.

About DaVita HealthCare Partners
DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc., a Fortune 500® company, is the parent company of DaVita Kidney Care and HealthCare Partners. DaVita Kidney Care is a leading provider of kidney care in the United States, delivering dialysis services to patients with chronic kidney failure and end stage renal disease. As of March 31, 2015, DaVita Kidney Care operated or provided administrative services at 2,197 outpatient dialysis centers located in the United States serving approximately 174,000 patients. The company also operated 93 outpatient dialysis centers located in 10 countries outside the United States. HealthCare Partners manages and operates medical groups and affiliated physician networks in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Florida and Colorado in its pursuit to deliver excellent-quality health care in a dignified and compassionate manner. As of March 31, 2015 HealthCare Partners provided integrated care management for approximately 830,000 patients. For more information, please visit DaVitaHealthCarePartners.com.