Ok, a departure from my normal blog posts. Google has developed a monster with the SEO machine. If you run a small site, and your subject/product/service is a low key item then you may stand a chance of ranking on Google at some point, but if you are in a bigger industry, the competition to rank for your key terms will be cut throat.

Now Google, apparently frown on obvious link purchasing, and will penalise sites that do just that, yet the money that is being invested by businesses through SEO agencies to go out and buy ‘discrete’ links to look like they have been built naturally, is huge. In fact, it is fair to say, that unless you have fairly bottomless pockets, to not only build your ranking position, but maintain it when you get there, then you will never feature, and this is alos likely to be on the long tail terms also.

Frankly it’s a monster, and a farce. All that Google spout about impartiality and good ethical backlinks showing a site’s true worth, is a complete falsehood.

Most users are getting to grips with the fact that the search page shows bought placement and apparently FREE placement. Well, be warned, the top ranking sites in the FREE section have been bought also. It’s a moneypit, and a vast majority of big businesses have fallen for it and will continue to pay vast sums for ever more!! Maybe one day they will wake up – or will they be so scared their competitors will continue to spend they must continue too? Is this chicken or egg?

Hey, I’m lucky, my keywords are not that big, so I get to page one completely free of charge. I’d hate to be running a car insurance or mobile phone business!!

(UPDATE) – Interesting how all my posts get ranked immediately on Google as a latest feed, but for this subject, being negative, no where in sight! Is that really a surprise as it is a criticism of Google?

Tags:

A new development on the unit in the last week. After dialysing for eleventy-ten years and self caring throughout that time, using 15g needles and high pump speeds, a ‘specialist’ nurse has now dictated that I should be using 14g needles with a pump speed in excess of 400ml/min. I currently run with  a pump  speed of around 470ml/min which tends to net out at a flow of 415ml/min. Interesting to read all the studies on this issue, that conclude that the needle size at 15g has now detrimental effect at high pump speeds. The only issue that manifests itself is a higher venous and lower arterial pressure, and this is primarily down to circuit pressure. I see no need therefore to change my needle size to 14g especially moving on to daily dialysis. My fistula, touch wood, has lasted for over 20 years, so I am adding to the risk of loss with daily dialysis without compounding the issue. Anybody else had a similar issue to address?

Tags: daily dialysis, Home Dialysis, self-care

Well, I now have dates for training on the NxStage. All being well, and with a following wind downhill, I start on the 15th on the unit and then the machine is installed at home the following week and I am supervised in the community (!) for 3 days and then set free!!  I will need to be signed off on the usual competencies for good dialysis practice as well as the competencies for the NxStage. I just need to consider that the bad habits of 20 years of self care are not too at odds with those competencies! I guess all the short cuts I take in prep etc to save time, albeit safe to do, are parked for now! Although in truth the shortcuts I take are only relevant to the Fresenius 4008. I will have to learn a whole stack of new ones!!

I am also going to have a week of daily dialysis on the Fresenius in May, which will be a good test and the blood result from that will not only help with drug dosage for InnoHep and Renagel, but also provide good comparisons for the NxStage so I can really judge what true benefits I am getting.

More soon!

Tags: daily dialysis, dialysis, Home Dialysis, NxStage, self-care, training