Southern States - Karnataka-Bangalore   

Only seven dialysis machines in Victoria Hospital

By Sahana Charan

— Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash

The dialysis unit in Victoria Hospital in Bangalore. — Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash

BANGALORE Oct. 11 . Patients from economically weaker sections suffering from renal failure have no choice other than going to government hospitals for dialysis, as they cannot afford to pay the charge for the process in private hospitals. But lack of equipment and personnel in government hospitals poses problems for them.

In Bangalore, Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital and Victoria Hospital offer dialysis service at subsidised rates. The dialysis unit in Victoria Hospital has only seven dialysis machines, of which one is out of order. There are only three technicians to operate the machines and provide service to the patients. Though patients who come for dialysis are admitted to the hospital, sometimes, they have to wait for a long time for their turn.

Siddappa (name changed), a senior citizen, has been on dialysis treatment for many years now. Since he cannot afford it in a private clinic, he has to go through the rigours of taking dialysis at the hospital which means waiting for a long time.

The problem could not have been that worse if the Government was not apathetic to the problem.

The three technicians, who have been working in the dialysis unit for close to 10 years, are employed on contract basis and their services have not been regularised, according to official sources at the hospital. There were four technicians, but one of them left some time ago, they said.

``Their contract has to be renewed every year and it is a cumbersome process, as it has to go through various officials. Yet the Government has not considered appointment of permanent employees, nor has it regularised the service of the contract employees,'' sources at the hospital told The Hindu.

The hospital gets an average of around 240 patients a month for dialysis, and the numbers have been steadily increasing. In 1999, the hospital received around 1,700 dialysis patients, whereas last year, 2,742 patients underwent dialysis. Most of these people come from economically poor backgrounds and cannot afford to go to a private clinic for dialysis.

Though the hospital has been trying its best to make do with the available facilities, the technicians, along with a nurse, are overburdened. Dialysis for one patient takes around four hours and a patient with acute kidney failure needs dialysis at least once in 10 days.

M. Rajanna, Medical Superintendent, Victoria Hospital, told The Hindu that "poor patients come here for dialysis as we provide them with good service at subsidised rates."

"In private clinics, they have to pay much more for dialysis. It is for the Government to take steps to regularise the services of the dialysis technicians,'' he said.

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