A state-of-the-art kidney centre on Wednesday started offering treatment to local and Afghan refugees in Quetta.
Balochistan’s health department and Balochistan Institute of Nephro-Urology Quetta joined hands to launch the initiative.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will cater to the needs of 14,000 patients with renal diseases every year.
The project has been implemented under the Refugee Affected and Hosting Areas (RAHA) initiative – a platform to improve access to quality services for both Afghan refugees and their host communities.
Under the agreement, the provincial government has provided dialysis machines and trained staff.
The UNHCR is constructing a building to house the dialysis unit as well as installing an elevator.
Moreover, a centralised oxygen and air-conditioner systems are being installed in addition to housing 15 hospital beds.
The facility currently treats 60 patients suffering from renal diseases every day.
With the new dialysis unit, an average of 45 additional patients who require haemodialysis will be treated free-of-cost each day.
It currently costs Rs6,000 per patient for a session. All chronic patients need dialysis between two- to three-times a week.
“Upgrading this facility [the Balochistan Institute of Nephro-Urology] will enable the host community and Afghan refugees to have access to modern health facilities,” UNHCR representative for Pakistan Ruvendrini Menikdiwela said.
We have helped implement a project that improves the quality of people’s lives,” she added.
The ceremony was attended by Balochistan High Court Chief Justice Mir Muhammad Noor Meskanzai, Provincial Health Secretary Saleh Muhammad Nasir and Balochistan Institute of Nephro-Urology Quetta CEO Karim Zarkoon.
This article originally appeared in The Express Tribune on May 2, 2018. Original link.
Disclaimer: Views expressed on this blog are not necessarily endorsed or supported by the Center for Research and Security Studies, Islamabad.
