Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves in October of this year told members of the House that Cabinet had taken a decision to put a moratorium on fees charged for hemodialysis at the Georgetown facility.
Minister of Health St. Clair Prince in response to a question from Opposition MP Daniel Cummings, in the House of Assembly on Tuesday provided a breakdown on dialysis patients that have benefited from the service as well as those that have passed away.
“The total number of patients that have been dialysed since it became operational in 2018: 176, female: 88, male: 88. How often do they receive the treatment? Patients receive dialysis two or three times a week; however a patient may require more frequent sessions depending on their current health condition. Notably, at the initial phase of treatment, a patient will have dialysis done daily for the first two days, this is done for a shorter period of two hours,” Minister Prince said.
The Health Minister then provided numbers on the number of dialysis patients that have died locally since the service became available.
“A total of 80 patients have since died. Note that there are patients that have since migrated; patients who switch to the private company and patients who have recovered and no longer require treatment,” the Health Minister said.
Minister Prince noted that most patients that have died had co morbidities such as lupus, cancer and NCDs (Non-communicable diseases)
Based on the Cabinet decision patients who are dealing with renal (kidney) failure have received this service free of charge for the months of September and October.
