Getting Started

When your dialysis clinic or physician refers you to Patient Care America for renal nutrition therapy, our expert team of professionals will work closely with you, your family and/or caregiver, and your dialysis team to help get you started on therapy. This process includes verifying your insurance coverage, ensuring all necessary clinical criteria are met, gathering the paperwork and signatures needed, scheduling your medication delivery and your start of therapy, and providing timely follow-ups to help optimize your therapy. We work closely with your dietitian(s), nephrologist, and full dialysis center staff to make the process as smooth and easy as possible for you. And, of course, our skilled team of PCA pharmacists, nurses, dietitians, and insurance specialists and are available to you throughout the process should you have any questions.

Insurance Verification 

In most cases, your dialysis center will provide Patient Care America with your insurance information, demographics and medical profile, and your appropriate lab reports when they refer you for either IDPN or IPN therapy. Like other prescriptions, your insurance coverage must be verified and authorized prior to us providing therapy. IDPN and IPN are covered by most insurances, including those provided by commercial, employer, and Centers of Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) health plans.

Fortunately, Patient Care America has a full team of Patient Care Coordinators (PCCs) to verify your insurance coverage for the therapy recommended by your healthcare team. As soon as we receive a referral for IDPN or IPN therapy, one of our PCCs reaches out to your insurance to check your benefits and request authorization to be the provider of your therapy. This is a very important step, and Patient Care America works closely with your healthcare team and insurance provider to gather all the necessary paperwork, signatures and approvals so you can start therapy as quickly as possible.

Learn More About Our Therapies

NutriRite® IDPN Therapy is a supplemental form of parenteral nutrition prescribed to provide malnourished hemodialysis patients with the protein, calories and other nutrients that their body needs for strength and energy.

NutriRite Home™ IDPN and IPN therapies are designed to provide malnourished home dialysis patients with a customized nutritional therapy formula to improve their nutritional status, health, and well-being.

Our Therapies

Scheduling Your Start of Therapy

Once authorization has been obtained from your insurance, our team will work with you and your dialysis center to schedule the delivery of your medication and supplies, and to set a start date for your IDPN or IPN therapy.

For hemodialysis patients at a dialysis center, administration of NutriRite® IDPN therapy is extremely easy and seamless. A nephrology nurse at your dialysis clinic will take care of providing the therapy at the same time they start your dialysis treatment. IDPN therapy is administered using your existing hemodialysis line, so there is no need for an additional access site or needle stick.

It is also extremely easy for NutriRite Home™ patients to get started on therapy. Our team will work with you and/or your caregivers to schedule a convenient time for one of our nurses or renal account managers to visit your home. Just prior to that visit, you will receive a delivery with your medication and supplies. NutriRite Home™ IDPN therapy is administered using your existing hemodialysis line, and NutriRite Home IPN therapy is administered in the same method as your peritoneal dialysis exchange, so there is no need for additional access sites, lines or needle sticks for home patients either.

During your first home IDPN or IPN therapy, your PCA professional will:

  • Help you understand the basics of your therapy
  • Review your medication and supplies
  • Education you about how to properly store, handle, and administer your medication
  • Teach you about any potential side effects and talk to you about ways to avoid and/or address them
  • Let you know how to get in touch with our clinical team of pharmacists, nurses, and dietitians should you ever have questions or if an issue arises

Questions

You can also contact our team of professionals at any time with questions or should an issue arise at 866-348-0441.