Hemodialysis

Hemodialysis

What do you know about this?

I guess many people do not really understand Hemodialysis. Not that i want to claim anything , but i do heard people coming around and said that Hemodialysis is where doctor cut out your kidney, washed it and put it back.*laugh* hmm... it is not so reasonable. Nothing much to blame. Not to say much, but at least i touched a little bit of knowledge in hemodialysis before.

It all started because of my mom operates a hemodialysis centre, as for my friends they know it.  I have worked there few years. I worked as clerk, writting letters, doing invoices, arranging the bills, call suppliers. I worked as office girl, went banks and post offices pay bills and went photocopy shops. I worked as maid, sweep the floor, mop the floor. I worked as nurse aide, preparing heparin, attached bloodline to machine and normal saline, recording patients blood flow, blood pressure, washed dialyzer. I worked as my mom's secretary, went seminars and talks with her, take down some notes about renal and dialysis. I even touches some of staff nurse's job, returning blood, writting letter upon patients to apply admission, and even know how to function the machine. Basically, i do what i can, i do what was assigned to me.lol. Oh, i even help designing the patient's log book. And the cover page i used the picture above.

Anyway, i started to think of all these because of the incidence of government wanted to close down one of the charity hemodialysis centre. I was shocked when i heard this news from my mom. Health Ministry had decided to issue a one-month notice to close down the Pertubuhan Hemodialysis Seberang Perai Selatan in Simpang Empat, Seberang Perai, Penang. The reason they are closing this centre is because of lacking monitoring by a nephrologist for the patients. This centre is doing a fine job saving the lives of the poor who cannot afford the expensive cost for dialysis which a patient of renal failure needs. As what they stated, each treatment costs from RM180 to RM200.

Patients needed the treatment three times per week, the optimum. How is it they are going to survive with each treatment costing RM180? Like my mom always said, end stage renal failure is a disease for rich people, if poor people get it, most probably they will only wait "the day" to come. My uncle passed away because of renal failure. And till now, sometimes i still can dream the same scene over and over again. There was my uncle in the hospital. I was walking upstairs and then my uncle lying on the bed and a bottle of small rocks in front of him. Ya, he gets the operation to get the small rocks out. Still feels weird i can dream of this over and over again.

Anyway, as what i was saying , the cost for the treatment. This is why my mom started to organize the centre. She went training and courses in hospital, and graduated as a trained nurse in dialysis. The Pertubuhan Hemodialysis Seberang Perai Selatan offering free treatment for poor patients, if government really shut down the centre, how many people will be suffering from that? Even my mom's centre, NGO, and yet she just charges RM60 with subsidies from government that she helped the patients to apply. And the remaining RM60, my mom will help them to find any charity organizations that willing to help them. As the result, some patients only need to pay RM10 per treatment, some RM30 and so, depends on which charity organizations.

Health cost in Malaysia have sky-rocketed and the lower income group patients has been badly affected. Having the charity organization, such as the one that government wanted to shut down, is a blessing for these people. The government should have just provide free medical support and centres and to support any charitable organization that does these noble jobs instead of slamming them with a closure order and a heavy fine in default. It is not easy to have charitable organizations like them helping to fund the poor people's health costs.

Anyhow, what we can do when government already decided? Protest? Yes, there are people protesting last Sunday. But i doubt that will be a success. Feel pity for those patients. Maybe the best is, since we are still living fine, please just take care of our kidney.

End Stage Renal Failure is not like a normal disease that can be cure. My mom always told me, once your kidney started to mulfunction, it will started to shrink till the very last stage. People with ESRF will have to depends on the treatment in order to survive. They cannot live without treatment. What i can say is, hypertension and diabetes is the main causes of getting steps closer to kidney failure. 

Everyone, take good care of your body. Dont regret when it is too late.