3 months ago
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End-stage kidney patients who require dialysis for their survival can heave a sigh of relieve as the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) is expected to resume out-patient services by next week.
Already, in-patients have started receiving dialysis from Monday after the Renal Unit shutdown operations two weeks ago due to shortage of consumables.
The closure allegedly led to the death of three persons as other patients were either left to fate or struggle to keep up with charges from private facilities which offered the service between GH¢600 and GH¢1000, per session as compared to public hospitals like the KBTH that charged about GH¢491 for each dialysis session.
The Head of the Public Relations of the hospital, Mustapha Salifu, in an interview yesterday, said additional medical supplies needed to run the unit have been received at the hospital to cater for out-patient department (OPD) services.
“The renal team will work out the schedule for the OPD to begin as soon as possible to bring relieve to our patients,” he said.
According to the PRO, following the procurement of 30 new dialysis machines expected to be installed by the end of the year, the issue of shortage of consumables would hopefully be a thing of the past.
“The new machines have their own consumables that can last for a year unlike what we have now which require that we order their consumables from the manufacturers.
They will also help reduce the pressure on the available machines now since we have not less than 50 patients a day coming in to receive dialysis which takes not less than four hours per session to complete,” he said.
Mr Salifu assured of management resolve to continue to provide excellence service to patients.
It would be recalled that the KBTH Renal Unit was closed in May last year, for close to six months allegedly leading to the death of 18 patients.
Upon a directive from the Health Minister, the centre was reopened to patients in November with government and management of KBTH committing to mapping out strategies to reduce the facility’s indebtedness for consistent operations.
In June this year, the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) announced the absorption of cost of dialysis for vulnerablepatients till the end of December 2024.
Patients aged 18 to 59 years accessing dialysis at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, Efia Nkwanta Regional Hospital, Ho Teaching Hospital, Tamale Teaching Hospital and KBTH, now received subsidy for two dialysis sessions per month at GH¢982.00, which translates GH¢491 per session.
Those under 18 years and above 60 years, the scheme has absorbed the costs of all eight dialysis sessions per month for patient’s as part of its 20th anniversary celebrations
BY ABIGAIL ANNOH
