Christen & Hohm Dialysis Center
September 10, 2023
It’s no secret that the Christen & Hohm families have made an impact on Huron. Their friendship and shared vision of independence and perseverance of the community and the people who live here are yet again making a difference. Paul Christen recently made a commitment to donate the funds from the future sale of his Huron home to the expansion and sustainability of dialysis in the community. The future gift is part of the HRMC Foundation’s Dialysis Capital Campaign, of which Dr. Robert Hohm is chairman.
Paul Christen and his late wife, Donna, worked in many facets of the business world, including retail, banking, wholesale distribution and professional sports. While Paul’s work took him all over the United States, Huron is home.
Dr. Robert Hohm, along with his wife, Holly, made the decision to return to Huron to care for the medical needs of the community as Dr. Hohm’s father and uncle operated the Tschetter & Hohm Clinic, founded in 1946. Dr. Hohm set out to become a urologist, but found a love for internal medicine after just four days on an internal medicine rotation. Christen, a lifelong friend of Dr. Hohm, shared just how fortunate the community is that Dr. Hohm pursued internal medicine.
“In 1980, Bob took over medical directorship of the dialysis unit to keep it going,” said Christen. “He is one of the main reasons we still have dialysis here in Huron.”
While Christen has been a devoted supporter of the overall health of Huron, he has a specific tie to dialysis. He began experiencing kidney failure while away from home and began dialysis in the state of California. He returned home to Huron to receive treatment under the care of his longtime friend, Dr. Hohm. Thankfully, the type of acute renal failure that Christen suffered was reversible.
“After reviewing his creatinine levels when he returned home, I told him, ‘Paul, you’re going to get off dialysis’,” said Dr. Hohm. While Christen was doubtful, he was indeed able to stop dialysis treatments. “I had to be off a while before I believed him,” chuckled Christen.
Christen was thankful to receive the remainder of his dialysis treatments in Huron as he would have had to relocate for work if the service had not been available in town. “For me, it was important to have dialysis here because I still needed to work during the treatments.” He continued, “When you need dialysis, you need it right away and it’s so important to make sure it is available here for future generations.”
Christen’s gift to the HRMC Foundation to expand and sustain dialysis qualifies for naming rights of the newly expanded HRMC Dialysis Center per the campaign fundraising guidelines. Christen insisted the Hohm name be included for Dr. Hohm’s commitment to the service. Soon, you’ll find a sign adorning the newly expanded dialysis unit that reads HRMC Christen & Hohm Dialysis Center.
For Christen and Hohm, it’s not about names on buildings, but a conviction that Huron is a community in which people can thrive. “This is a place where you can work hard and really make a difference,” said Hohm. Christen agreed and added, “What a place to raise your children.”
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