Renal care in Barbados has gone “state of the art”. And improvement will save the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) $3 million over the next year. With the incidence of non-communicable diseases still on the rise, the RENAL CARE IN BARBADOS has gone “state of the art”. And improvement will save the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) $3 million over the next year.

With the incidence of non-communicable diseases still on the rise, the new Artificial Kidney Unit which was opened yesterday at the QEH is a welcomed relief. While opening the almost $1 million unit yesterday, Minister of Health, Jerome Walcott underscored the importance of the high-tech facility, which was significantly funded by the Rotary Club of Barbados West, and will help more than 150 Barbadians deal with chronic kidney problems.

The facility is “comparable to any in the developed world” and has increased the number of dialysis units to 24 from 14, making critical care more available to those who need it. Walcott said that Barbados was continually working to improve the quality of heath care, noting that “some islands in the Eastern Caribbean have no dialysis unit”.

“Barbados is in the midst of an epidemic of non-communicable diseases. Chronic kidney failure is a result of these diseases, such as diabetes and high blood pressure,” said Dr Emile Mohammed, nephrologist.

Dr. Emile Mohammed, Consultant nephrologist and head of the nephrology services, making a point with Margaret O’Shea, Consultant General and Kidney Transplant Surgeon at the press conference.

DOCTORS at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) have transplanted a kidney from a healthy 58-year-old man to his 28-year-old son. The “operation” was done on May 14, and was the first “living related kidney transplant” conducted at the QEH in ten years.

Yesterday, at a Press conference at the QEH board room, Dr Emile Mohammed, consultant nephrologist and head of the nephrology services, said the son was a kidney failure patient and on dialysis for over eight years.

He said the operation had gone extremely well and both the son and the father were already home.

“I think the operation going well is a testament to the very meticulous preparation of both the father and the son, the surgical expertise and the meticulous and detailed care they received after the operation,” he said.

He noted that what was very reassuring was that the expertise involved in doing the transplant, was largely employees of the QEH.

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