Kidney Dialysis (Kirsty Williams AM )

Cymraeg
English

Kirsty Williams AM <info@kirstywilliams.org.uk>

Kidney Dialysis

August 28, 2009 12:00 AM
By Kirsty Williams AM in Mid Wales Journal Friday 28th August 2009

It is great news for the Powys that the Welsh Government has finally identified the county as a top priority for a new Kidney Dialysis Unit and that the Renal Advisory Group and Renal Networks are currently undertaking an "option appraisal" which will consider various locations, including Llandrindod Wells Hospital. A business case is to be submitted to the Welsh Government by September, after which a decision on the location will be made by the Minister.

With about 1 in 10 people having some form of kidney disease this is an important issue. 1 in 50 -100 have moderate to sever kidney disease and 1 in 1000 will develop end stage renal failure (ESRF) and require either dialysis or transplantation. Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is a progressive loss of kidney function over a period of months or years. Once CKD is detected it is possible to slow down, or even stop the disease with medication and changing habits. However, ESRF occurs when more than 80% of renal function is lost. It must be treated with renal replacement therapy through either dialysis or transplantation. Dialysis is a procedure which removes waste products from the blood.

Standards for the care of people with renal disease state that patients should be able to reach dialysis within a 30 minute drive time of their home, but in Powys this is rarely the case and access to renal dialysis is totally inadequate. We currently have no services in the county despite around 90 people in Powys needing dialysis every year with around 20 people on the waiting list. The demand for dialysis is increasing in the area every year. Many patients are having to travel excessive distances to hospitals such as Hereford for treatment, whilst others are being put off from accessing treatment altogether due to a lack of transport and the long stressful journey. It is expected that more local services would increase take up significantly.

I am campaigning for the Health Minister to site the dialysis unit centrally in Llandrindod Wells Hospital as it would provide fair access for all residents along with helping to secure the future of this important community hospital. It is essential that the Minister is persuaded of the case for the unit to be cited in Llandrindod Wells and that the campaign has momentum and is vocal. I am therefore asking as many people as possible to sign up to my petition or to write to me showing their support for the campaign. The petition can be accessed at: http://kirstywilliams.org.uk/petitions/3.html or you can contact me for a hard copy. Please do help secure the unit in Llandrindod Wells by adding your name to the campaign.