RSG To Establish More Dialysis Centres

In keeping with its quest to make improved health care delivery a priority in Rivers State, the state government has stated its intention to establish more dialysis centres in the state.

Commissioner for Health, Dr Sampson Parker, who spoke through, Dr Okere Iragunima a former chief Medical Director of the Braith Waite Memorial Specialist Hospital (BMSH) said the increasing incidents of kidney failure in the state prompted the government to establish a dialysis centre at BMSH, saying that the government intends to establish more in some of the newly built primary healthcare centers across the state.

 Dr Parker said the trend in increasing kidney related diseases is a worrisome both to the state government, and medical practitioners, pointing out that World Health Organisation (WHO) report shows that the current prevalence rate is 177 million globally.

The commissioner, who spoke during this years World Kidney Day symposium, attributed the cause to harmful life style partterns and eating habits of people, noting that the consumption of  herbal drugs and supplements cause a lot of damage to the kidney, while consumption of fast foods and sugared drinks are predisposing factors to diabetes, hence “people should be careful with what they ingest.

He also advised the people to take their health  seriously by ensuring that they undergo regular check-up especially for them to known their kidney and diabetic status.  Dr Parker noted that sexually transmitted diseases also contribute to kidney problems, calling on people to avoid casual sex unfaithfulness, on the part of married people.

Earlier in his address, the chairman of the symposium, former chief Medical Director, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Dr Uriel Etawo, said the purpose of the symposium, with the theme “Protect your kidney: control Diabetes” was to raise awareness for the devastating effects of kidney diseases and diabetes as well as address the threats to kidnies and encourage people to invest in the future of their kidneys.

Dr Etawo, stated that about 20 to 30 percent of kidney disease patients end up with diabetes, “which is very expensive to treat, and they ultimately end up dying.”

In her paper, “Global Diabetes; Trend and Impact,” Dr C.N. Unachwkwu, noted that Type 2 diabetes is brought on by both genetic and environmental factors, especially obesity in children.

Tonye Nria-Dappa