Kendall resident and dialysis nurse Miguel Neris didn’t hesitate to raise his hand when his employer, dialysis provider Fresenius Medical Care North America, asked for volunteers to travel to his native Puerto Rico to provide relief to the nurses on the island and the patients they care for.
There are 3.4 million U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico still living in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. For the thousands of Puerto Rican residents living with chronic kidney disease, access to dialysis and the nurses who provide treatment is a matter of life or death.
Dialysis patients require treatment three to four times a week to clean their blood of toxins and extra fluid. But it’s not just the patients who need help — it’s the nurses, too, many of whom have put their personal needs aside to care for patients around the clock since the hurricane hit.
Neris is one of dozens of Fresenius Medical Care dialysis nurses who are volunteering on a rotating basis to work in Puerto Rico for a one- to two-week period at least through the end of the year. Their volunteer efforts are able to relieve nurses who live on the island, allowing them time to care for their families and damaged homes.
“When I heard they needed volunteers, I knew I had to go. The people of Puerto Rico need us and I want to work from sun up until sundown to help,” Neris said.
For Neris, returning to Puerto Rico was a homecoming. Before moving to Miami with his wife and two children, Neris started his career in dialysis and worked at a clinic near San Juan for 15 years. He returned to that same clinic on Oct. 23 to volunteer, reuniting with his sister, who is also a dialysis nurse there, and former colleagues. Patients and staff, as well as family and friends, were overjoyed to have him back in his hometown of Humacao.
“We’re like family at the clinic in Puerto Rico. I wanted to bring hope to everyone during this devastating time. It was a great honor to work for my people and be there for them,” he said.
With the selfless care that Neris and many other nurses provide, dialysis patients in Puerto Rico are able to continue receiving the treatments they need to stay alive.
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