Durham Nephrology Associates has provided kidney care to patients in Granville County for more than 40 years. That relationship took an important step forward this year with the launch of inpatient dialysis services at Granville Medical Center in Oxford. If you or a family member is hospitalized at Granville Medical Center and requires dialysis, here is what this change means for you.
What Changed at Granville Medical Center
In June 2026, Granville Health System launched inpatient dialysis services at Granville Medical Center, following approval through North Carolina’s Certificate of Need process. Durham Nephrology Associates is providing clinical collaboration and physician support for this new service.
Before this launch, patients admitted to Granville Medical Center who needed dialysis often had to be transferred to another facility to receive treatment. That meant additional travel, time away from family, and added complexity during an already difficult hospital stay. With inpatient dialysis now available on site, patients can receive the care they need without leaving the hospital where they are already being treated.
Why This Matters for Patients and Families
Being hospitalized is stressful under any circumstances, and that stress can be compounded when a patient also needs to be moved to a separate facility for a recurring treatment like dialysis. Granville Health System CEO Adam McConnell noted that the goal of this expansion is to improve access to essential care and help patients remain close to home and their loved ones during treatment.
For families, this means less time spent coordinating transportation and visits across multiple locations and more consistency in who provides care. For patients, it means dialysis can now be worked into the hospital’s existing plan of care, rather than requiring a separate transfer that can delay other aspects of treatment.
Durham Nephrology’s Role in This Expansion
Dr. S. Ted Shaikewitz of Durham Nephrology Associates has spoken to the quality of the team Granville Medical Center assembled to bring this service to life. Our nephrologists work alongside hospital staff to help manage the medical needs of patients receiving inpatient dialysis, bringing the same clinical standards our patients rely on at our outpatient clinics into the inpatient setting.
This expansion is a natural extension of the work Durham Nephrology Associates has done in Granville County for decades. Our physicians, including Dr. Charles Cooperberg, Dr. Tomasz Gawecki, Dr. Amar Kathresal, Dr. Romin Bonakdar, and Dr. Nawal Habib, along with our physician assistants and advanced practice providers, are committed to making sure patients in this community have access to the same level of nephrology expertise, whether they are being seen in one of our offices or admitted to the hospital.
Who This Service Is For
Inpatient dialysis at Granville Medical Center is intended for patients who are admitted to the hospital and require dialysis as part of their treatment, whether they have chronic kidney disease, acute kidney injury, or another condition requiring this therapy. This is separate from the outpatient dialysis and clinic services Durham Nephrology Associates provides at our regular locations, including our clinics offering hemodiafiltration in South Durham and West Pettigrew.
If you have a scheduled outpatient dialysis routine and are later admitted to Granville Medical Center for an unrelated hospital stay, this new service means your dialysis needs can now typically be managed without a transfer to another hospital. Your care team will coordinate the details of your treatment schedule directly with the hospital’s nephrology support team.
How Inpatient Dialysis Care Is Coordinated
One of the most common questions we hear from patients and families is how care is actually coordinated once a hospitalized patient begins dialysis at Granville Medical Center. In practice, the process is designed to fit within the hospital’s existing treatment plan rather than function as a separate care track. When a patient is admitted and identified as needing dialysis, the hospital’s medical team works directly with nephrology support to schedule and administer treatment on-site, using the same clinical protocols and monitoring standards that patients would expect at any Durham Nephrology Associates location.
This kind of coordination matters because dialysis patients often have other medical needs being managed at the same time, whether that is a cardiac condition, an infection, or a surgical recovery. Keeping dialysis treatment within the same facility as the rest of a patient’s hospital care reduces the number of handoffs between providers and makes it easier for the full care team, from hospitalists to nephrologists to nursing staff, to stay aligned on a patient’s overall treatment plan.
A Longstanding Relationship with the Granville County Community
Durham Nephrology Associates has cared for patients in Granville County for more than four decades, and that history is part of why this expansion carries particular significance for our practice. Over the years, we have seen firsthand how limited access to specialized services in smaller communities can create real hardship for patients and families, particularly when a hospital stay requires transportation to a facility outside the county.
The addition of inpatient dialysis at Granville Medical Center directly addresses one of these long-standing gaps. It reflects years of relationship-building between Durham Nephrology Associates and Granville Health System, and it is the kind of collaboration we hope to continue building on as the needs of this community evolve.
What Patients and Families Should Do Next
If you or a family member is admitted to Granville Medical Center and dialysis becomes part of your care plan, you do not need to take any special action to request this service. The hospital’s medical team will identify the need and coordinate directly with nephrology support to begin treatment. If you have questions about what to expect, hospital staff and your nephrology team can walk you through the details, including how often treatment will occur and how it fits into your broader hospital stay.
For patients who already receive outpatient care through Durham Nephrology Associates and want to understand how this new inpatient option might affect a future hospital stay, our office is glad to answer questions in advance so there are no surprises if that situation arises.
It is also worth noting that inpatient dialysis is a distinct service from the outpatient dialysis treatment most patients receive on an ongoing basis. If you currently come to one of our clinics for regular scheduled treatment, that routine does not change. This service specifically addresses situations in which a patient is hospitalized, whether planned or unplanned, and requires dialysis during the hospital stay.
Part of a Broader Commitment to Growing Access
This launch comes at a time when Durham Nephrology Associates is expanding in several ways to better serve our patients across the region. In addition to this new inpatient service, we are introducing hemodiafiltration at our South Durham and West Pettigrew clinics and opening a new office in South Durham this September. Each of these steps reflects the same underlying goal: ensuring patients throughout Durham and the surrounding counties, including Granville County, have consistent access to high-quality kidney care close to home.
Questions About Inpatient Dialysis at Granville Medical Center
If you have questions about dialysis services during a hospital stay at Granville Medical Center, speak with your care team at the hospital or contact Durham Nephrology Associates directly. Our physicians and providers are available to help you understand your treatment options, whether you are managing kidney disease as an outpatient or navigating care during a hospital admission. Reach out to our office today to learn how we can support you and your family at every stage of kidney care.
