World Kidney Day today: 80pc patients fail to take dialysis for want of money

Staff Reporter :
The ‘World Kidney Day-2023’ is being observed in the country and elsewhere across the planet today (Thursday) .
The day is going to be marked in Bangladesh through holding different programmes including rally, discussion and seminar aimed on building awareness on kidney diseases and its prevention methods.
This year’s theme is ‘Kidney Health for All – Preparing for the unexpected, supporting the vulnerable!’
As part the ‘World Kidney Day’ different organisations have organised various events since the last several days. Most of the events would be observed on Thursday.
Speakers at a discussion meeting on Tuesday said that about 80 percent of the patients failed to take dialysis due to shortages of money.
National Institute of Kidney Diseases and Urology in Shyamli in the capital organised the meeting.
The speakers at the meeting said that about 18,900 patients took dialysis regularly in 2020.
“But about 80 percent of them failed to take the dialysis later due to want of money. It will push them to the certain death,” the speakers said.
“About 17 percent of the people of the country are suffering from long-term kidney diseases,” Professor Dr. Harunur Rashid, President of Bangladesh Kidney Foundation said this at the programme.
Meanwhile, experts said in a city roundtable discussion meeting that kidney patients are most vulnerable during any types of unforeseen disasters.
They said that kidney diseases become a serious health hazardouse worldwide.
Widerange infections among the people, huge treatment costs, catastrophic consequences of these patients pushed numbers of kidney patients to death worldwide, the discussants said.
 The experts said that the kidney patients need to emergency preparations for keeping them safe during sudden and unforeseen disasters.
Kidney Awareness Monitoring and Prevention Society (KAMPS) organised the meeting at the National Press Club in the capital on Saturday.
Professor Dr. MA Samad, President and Founder of KAMPS presented the key note in the event.
Professor Dr. MA Samad said that the government and authorities in local administrations have to be more aware about disaster management.
He suggested the authorities have to be alert about unforeseen disasters like earthquake, tsunami, fire and such others so that the seriously ill patients like kidney survivors could avail their medical treatment and support continuously.
The professor also commended the patients to personally stock emergency medicines and kit box. Gather knowledge and information about alternative dialysis centers. Maintain networks with the relatives, friends and neighbors to gain emergency assistances. Those patients have to change their diets such as to take less food, vegetables, fruits and water during the unexpected disasters.
The other experts at the discussion also emphasised similar opinions.
The speakers urged the government to ensure medical treatment facilities to all kidney patients’ poor or rich and urban or remote areas patients, especially during any disasters.
They said that there are more than two crore kidney patients in Bangladesh.
Among them, 35 to 40 thousand of the patients’ kidneys become totally dysfunctional every year.
The experts said that the kidney patients need undisrupted medicines and in cases, dialysis’, so they have to special care during disasters.