NxStage wonkery on the Freedom Cruise

By Bill Peckham

One of the best parts of the cruise was spending an extended period of time with a group of people who knew exactly what you were talking about. At Renal Support Network meetings everyone "gets it" and this was like that, but with the Freedom cruisers we're talking NxStage wonkery. 

Mike and Lauri had this rig to hold their 30L of dialysate - a converted music stand that stood on its own instead of using a pole harnessed to the cycler. This is a GREAT idea! I've been imagining tripod contraptions for a while now, but this is an elegant, easily transportable solution.

It seems to me that separating the dialysate from the machine would allow for a lighter machine. It might even mean being able to keep the weight of the cycler, in its travel case, below the fifty pound threshold that the airlines normally consider the maximum weight of items traveling as baggage. While this weight limit does not apply to medical devices (wheel chairs can weigh hundreds of pounds) getting the cycler and travel case under the fifty pound bar would be a huge achievement.

It must be underscored that the current design preformed. Every NxStage cycler made the trip without any performance problems, and from what I've heard made the trip home. That is a great design achievement. The cycler's job number one, to deliver a safe, healthy dose of dialysis, day after day, was accomplished. The cyclers held up and they indeed feel like they'd hold up. I like that about them, I like the metal solidity of the cycler, its feels robust but I think a 30 pound version could be made as durable.

I've taken a cycler on at least a dozen flights and it has always meant four checked bags (in addition to any personal luggage) but no more. After talking to fellow cruiser Jim, I realize that everything needed in addition to the cycler can fit into a reasonably sized case made to hold electronics - all you have to do is break the bracket down. Combined with a three piece pole like Rich's and I'd have just two pieces of NxStage luggage when flying. I also liked Susan's cycler travel case - it had stickers showing what was inside.

The travel case makes an obvious stand to set the machine on during treatment while away from home; this is a design opportunity. The travel case could be designed so that when you flip the base over the travel case holds the cycler and in a way that improves the functionality of the leak detector. It wasn't until the third day of the cruise that it occurred to me that I could store my packing boxes inside the travel case. It's already multipurpose but there is a lot of potential there.

I think, as it now stands, the future looks bright for more NxStage travel. And it is only going to get easier over time.

Comments

[Rich Berkowitz]

One might think it was more amazing all of the cyclers worked without a hitch considering the baggage handlers didn't seem to know the top from the bottom. Each time my cycler came off the carousel it was upsides down. It didn't matter whether we had labels on the top indicating "medical equipment". They always turned the machine over. However, the bottom line is that the machine worked. At the beginning we were prepared to swap machines amongst ourselves if necessary, especially with four doing nocturnal and the rest short daily it would have been no problem. That didn't turn out to be the case so it was Plan A all the way.