A water shortage at the renal unit at Lamu’s King Fahad County Referral Hospital has disrupted dialysis services for kidney patients.
Nation.Africa has learnt that 12 patients were asked last week to seek medication in Mombasa and other areas outside Lamu as the water problem was addressed.
But the patients rejected the proposal, citing costs.
Health Executive Anne Gathoni admitted that there was a problem with water supply to the renal unit at the hospital.
Ms Gathoni said that with the ongoing drought, the water is too saline, affecting the functioning of the dialysis machines.
Last week, one of the dialysis machines broke down during a treatment session, with the official saying a renal unit requires adequate and consistent supply of quality water to be effective.
But most of the water used on the island is salty. The Lamu County government set up a mini-desalination plant that has for years converted the saline water into quality water for use by the renal facility.
However, the plant has been malfunctioning for several months.
“We have some hitch with the water plant that serves the dialysis unit, but the issue is being addressed,” Ms Gathoni said.
Patients were still being attended to despite the water hitch, she said.
“Because of the lack of water, we have reduced the number of those undergoing dialysis sessions per day,” she said.
“For instance, if we used to serve five patients per day, we’re currently attending to two or three only while the rest are rescheduled for other days. We expect the problem to be resolved possibly by this week.”
Kidney patients interviewed by Nation.Africa on Monday confirmed the changes in the dialysis sessions.
One of the patients, a 50-year-old man, said the problem started last year.
The man said he had been urgently referred to Mombasa for dialysis, with King Fahad Hospital saying that due to water shortages, its machines were not working.
“In Lamu, we pay Sh9,500 per dialysis session. I have to undergo two dialysis sessions every week. That means in a single week, I use Sh19,000. The good thing is that all this money is paid by NHIF through the county government,” the patient said.
He added: “We need the dialysis services to be provided within our county. It’s easier that way. That’s why when we were told to pick referrals to other hospitals last week we declined.
“In July, a similar situation happened and I had to pay Sh65,000 in Mombasa for dialysis. They should rectify the water problem so we can continue to receive the services here.”
Another man said he was among those who refused to be referred to Mombasa last week.
“Sometimes we reach the facility by 6am but we’re forced to wait for hours until 10am. That’s when we’re told the machines are ready for sessions,” said the 73-year-old.
“Too much time is also taken for one dialysis session to be completed and every time we ask, we’re told it’s because of the water problem.”
Another man said despite the hitch, hospital administrators had ensured dialysis sessions continued.
“I always go to the facility on Monday and Thursday. We still thank the county government for ensuring services are provided for us despite the water hitch. Sometimes we’re forced to stay until late in the evening, provided we complete our dialysis sessions.”
The Lamu renal unit was part of the equipment procured by the national government for Sh1.1 billion under the Managed Equipment Services (MES) programme.
The unit was officially commissioned in 2018 alongside a computed tomography (CT) scan centre by the Health Cabinet secretary at the time, Sicily Kariuki. BY DAILY NATION