The three physicians behind Flagstaff's newest dialysis clinic narrowly avoided becoming a small cog in a large corporate-owned chain this spring.

One of the co-owners, Matthew Gembala, credits an unlikely group for the independence: the Federal Trade Commission.

The story of how the clinic got its start begins with Harnath Singh, the medical director at the new clinic, DSI Flagstaff Dialysis.

The doctor spent the last 15 years working in Flagstaff specializing in treating diseases and disorders of the kidneys.

Last year, he decided to partner with Dr. Baroon Rai and Gembala to open a new clinic to offer dialysis to his patients.

But although the three men are experts at treating kidney disease, Gembala concedes he doesn't know the first thing about how to build a clinic or how to run the business end of it.

The three doctors partnered with Liberty Dialysis and built the state-of-the-art facility last year, getting the proper certifications to operate the clinic in February.

The decision to partner with a small national chain was intentional, Gembala said, they wanted some flexibility in their day to day operations.

"That was the whole reason we did this," he said. "We didn't want to be with a bigger corporation, we wanted to be with someone small," he said.

Shortly after opening their doors, the entire chain of Liberty Dialysis centers was purchased by Fresenius Medical Care for $1.7 billion.

The large national chain already owned the other dialysis treatment center here in Flagstaff, triggering action by the FTC.

"As part of the merger, the FTC looked at every single market and they came up with several markets where, if Fresenius would have purchased those clinics, it would be a monopoly," he said.

The clinic would eventually be sold to DSI Renal, another smaller chain that owns and operates 85 dialysis clinics in 23 states.

The business celebrated the transition from Liberty to DSI last week with a small ribbon-cutting ceremony, now calling the business DSI Flagstaff Dialysis.

Inside the facility, Gembala is proud of the small creature comforts offered to his patients: heated massage chairs and individual station flat-screen TVs.

He holds out his fingers, pinching them as he discusses the cost of building a new facility. The creature comforts added to the overall cost, he said, but they so important to those who visit the clinic three times a week, some spending up to four hours each visit sitting in the chair.

DSI Flagstaff Dialysis has a total of 17 chairs for those undergoing hemodialysis.

There is a state-of-the-art filtration system that turns potable city water into pharmaceutical grade water.

The company also offers peritoneal dialysis treatment for its patients, a type of self-administered therapy that can be managed by patients at home.

Gembala said the advantage of the latter is the freedom his patients enjoy by treating themselves at home rather than coming into the clinic, which he suggests is similar to having a part-time job.

Joe Ferguson can be reached at 556-2253 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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