We appreciate what Kenya government is doing in increasing the dialysis centres in Kenya. We kidney patients appreciate the good effort President Uhuru's government is doing to improve the health and care of kenya patients. However kidney patient are forgotten, Kidney disease is the most expensive disease in the world.
kidney patients in Kenya pay between $ 40.00 (Ksh 4000) and it could be as expensive as $ 147 (Ksh 14,700) per session in private hospitals excluding doctors consultation and travel costs. This equates to equiting to $6240 or (Ksh 624,000) per year as one is supposed to have a 4 hour dialysis session three times a week. Dialysis being a life saving therapy it means the poor who have no money its a death sentence - they die.
Kidney transplantation in Kenya costs $ 7000.00 (Ksh700,000) and in some private hospitals $15000 (Ksh1.5M). For those who go to India for medical tourism they pay about $ 20,000 (Ksh 2.0M) excluding travel and accommodation for the donor and the recipient.
The cost of immunosuppressive drugs ( generic ) costs the few lucky patients who may have had kidney transplantation likely in India over $ 3551.52 (Ksh 355,152) per year and a trip to India for an annual checkup.
If Kenya is looking after 1.4 Million people living with HIV (http://www.unaids.org/en/regionscountries/countries/kenya) and also paying for treatment of cancer patients then its time Kenya kidney patients also gets taken care of. Its high time those decision makers and NGO who fund healthcare in Kenya listens to NCD - kidney failure patients.
The dialysis sessions are free in Sudan, in Tanzania, in Egypt, in South Africa and in Cameroon the government subsidies dialysis session by (95%) just to mention but a few.
Kenya is of age to have free dialysis, free kidney transplantation and immunosuppressive drugs for her renal patients.
This petition is a combined effort of Forum For Figo Foundations ( FFF ) which includes; Haki, National Kidney Foundation (NKF). DKCF, Life to Life, Kenya Kidney & LUPUS F, Kenya Kidney Patients Association, Kidney Focus Kenya KFK, and Kidney Research Kenya (KRK).
