The Tribune

By PAVEL BAILEY

THE Bahamas Kidney Association is in need of support as the group aims to raise public awareness in the ongoing fight against kidney disease which they say is on the rise.

During an interview with The Tribune, founder of the Kidney Foundation of the Bahamas Dr Ada Thompson and Bahamas Kidney Association president Tamika Roberts discussed how they work to help people with kidney issues.

As the successor to the defunct Kidney Foundation of The Bahamas, the Bahamas Kidney Association has recently received official non-profit organisation status and continues the work of its predecessor of raising funds for people experiencing kidney disease. Despite recent challenges that arose due to COVID-19, Ms Roberts spoke about how the association is still trying its best to help people suffering from kidney disorders in a variety of ways.

“Right now, with the new organisation we just got registered last year, with COVID, with the pandemic it’s made it a bit challenging,” she said.

“I can tell you what we have been doing so far. Last year we started with kidney alerts and these alerts would take place monthly and we would just go to different places and test for high blood pressure and glucose (levels), as you know they are the two main causes for kidney disease. Actually, some people that we tested did not even know they had high blood pressure or diabetes.”

She said that they have screened hundreds of people so far and have hosted several webinars to bring awareness to renal health. Ms Roberts also discussed how the organisation has noticed an alarming rise in kidney disease lately, and that they wish to raise awareness on the issue.

“We feel that more awareness or more information needs to be given concerning kidney disease. It’s going up, it’s on the rise in The Bahamas but we don’t think a lot of people are aware of this.”

While the organisation already has plans outlined for fundraisers and events for the remainder of the year, including support group sessions, they also wanted to bring attention to the struggles of the average dialysis patient, as Dr Thompson explained the hardships these people face daily.

“It is a hard life. Three times a week to be hooked up to a machine for three or four hours and it does weaken your bones, your blood and so they need a lot of support. Financially sometimes, for rent or food, clothing. It strips you of your dignity as well as your substance and so they need a lot of support. Many patients who have cancer and recover can go back to work and even work while they are taking treatment, this is very difficult for the older dialysis patient, they need the care and support and encouragement,” she said.

Dr Thompson also cautioned that kidney failure was not only an old age disease as there are people as young as 20 who are on dialysis and that they too need the public’s support.

“So, I’d like the general public to know that they have young people on dialysis too, in their 20s, and so this is not an old age disease, this can happen at any age. Usually in the middle years, 40 to 50, but I say it can happen to young people in their 20s to old people in their 80s, so it’s a broad-spectrum condition, end stage renal disease or renal failure is the common term for it. And so, we need more public exposure.”

As the Kidney Association is a fully private non-profit organisation, Ms Roberts urged the public to donate to their cause.

“At this time, we are looking for funding, we have different levels of funding that we have started to send out to corporate sponsors and that can be anywhere from $50 to as much as possible. But our range is $1,000 to $10,000 to $25,000 and we would want this to be consistent throughout the years.”

For more information, visit www.bahamaskidneyassociation.org, contact Ms Roberts at 457-0990 or Dr Thompson at 808-9971, or by email at info@bahamaskidneyassociation.org.