As home dialysis nurses, our patients become a part of our second family. We invest emotion and time into helping our patients. At times, we are needed to help our fellow home teammates and their patients. Stephanie received a phone call from a nurse who needed urgent coverage for his clinic. A fairly new to PD patient, unfortunately, suffered a stroke and was hospitalized for almost two months. He would be discharged in two days' time, but unfortunately was unable to regain his prior level of functioning and needed round-the-clock care moving forward. His sister so graciously offered her support to continue his PD journey, as she believed that it continued to be his best option and provided flexibility for his family to assist with his care.

With the patient's primary nurse unavailable, Stephanie took charge, rearranged her schedule, and coordinated training for the patient's new caregiver. Along with the training, she assisted the caregiver in organizing, gathering, and ordering supplies that were needed for daily treatment. Most importantly, she created open communication between herself and the caregiver to help her maneuver this new journey.

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Stephanie regularly helps our patients to navigate the new costs that are associated with their CKD diagnosis. Stephanie ensures that all patients have not only the necessary information they need for ordering services, but provides the teaching and problem-solving tools to reduce their individual burden in the event of sudden prescription changes.