Singapore - A Leading Nation in Kidney Failure
Singapore ranks a shocking fourth in the world for the prevalence of kidney failure, and numbers are still rising.
The garden was filled with people who seemed like they are simply having a peaceful walk and taking some alone time for themselves to enjoy the serenity and quietness of their surroundings. They had a healthy glow on their faces, they walked like how a physically abled person would and talked the very same manner like any of us would.
However, unbeknownst to others who have no idea who they were, these are people who suffer from kidney failure. They are the ones who struggle with so many aspects of their lives due to their health condition. These were people who are in the campus gardens of the National Kidney Foundation’s building.
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is an organization in Singapore that aims to provide support for patients who have been diagnosed with kidney failure and ultimately find themselves living a battlefield lifestyle when every day is a struggle to go about their routines due to their sickness.
Singapore is the leading nation for diabetes-induced kidney failure in the world. Throughout time, patients that have been admitted to hospitals and diagnosed with kidney failure or any other related illnesses have been people of various backgrounds and age range. SINGAPORE LEADS IN KIDNEY FAILURE
According to NKF’s key statistics on kidney failure in Singapore, Singapore ranks first in the world for diabetes-induced kidney failure, fourth in the world for prevalence of kidney failure and sixth in the world for new cases of kidney failure. Beyond this, based on the analytics gathered by NKF themselves, it is shown that in every five hours, there will be one new kidney failure dialysis patient in Singapore.
Medical Social Workers Lim Sze Ying, 33, and Samantha Lua, 28, share the fact that there has been an increase each year for the number of new kidney failure patients every year. Beyond diabetes-induced kidney failure, there are many other symptoms and causes across the spectrum that could lead to kidney failure of any sort.
The End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), known as chronic kidney failure, is a medical condition in which the kidneys no longer function. Kidney failure is commonly caused by diabetes and hypertension, and according to NKF, more than 60 percent of new kidney failure cases are caused by diabetes.
Singapore has one of the highest rates of kidney failure in the whole world and the increase in the number of kidney failure cases is worrying. Facing an ageing population and increasing rates of obesity, diabetes and hypertension, it is needless to say that kidney failure cases are increasing as well.
“There is an increase in the number of younger patients nowadays,” Ms Lim stated worryingly. “I have been getting patients as young as 21 or 22, as compared to when I first joined NKF, the age group is 50 and above.” CAUSES OF THE INCREASE IN KIDNEY FAILURE PATIENTS
The alarming increase of kidney failure patients in Singapore has brought to light some to reasons for the increase. Some causes that are identified to be the reason for the increase is the change of lifestyle among the young people in Singapore. There are certain lifestyle factors among the youth that could impact their lifestyles significantly.
“I gather that the rapid increase in patients of Diabetes-induced kidney failure is due to the lifestyle changes the youth make in their life,” stated Ms Lua, who expressed that the alarming increase in kidney failure in younger people was a concern to NKF as well as Singapore’s health scene.
“Life decisions such as working too hard, stressing out too much, sleeping at 2 to 3am in the morning and consuming food products that are high in sugar and salt content do make an impact on the health of the younger people, and could potentially result in kidney failure as well,” she added on. KIDNEY FAILURE TREATMENT
Kidney failure is fatal to one’s health. If the kidneys stop working completely and left untreated, it will result in death. When kidneys fail, patients either leave it untreated and live as long as their kidneys allow them to, or seek treatment to go through dialysis and wait for a kidney transplant. According to NKF, there is a total of about 4,500 dialysis patients and beneficiaries as of 31 December 2018.
Dialysis usually starts when patients lose 85 to 90 percent of their kidney function. It helps to keep the body in balance by removing waste, salt and extra water to prevent them from building up in the body. There are two types of dialysis -- hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Hemodialysis is the use of an artificial kidney to remove waste, extra chemicals and fluid from the patient’s blood. Peritoneal dialysis is the cleaning of blood inside the patient's body and a patient waiting for a kidney transplant would have to wait for an average of nine years before even receiving the chance of getting a transplant for themselves. HELP FOR THE PATIENTS
Every patient who is diagnosed with kidney failure find themselves having to deal with significant changes in their lives. They did not just have to deal with medical issues and consider dialysis sessions and medication as part of their new life routine. There are also many emotional issues and mental health issues.
Not only do the patients themselves have to accept the fact that they are now sick, their family members, friends and even significant others would have to accept the situation and deal with it for themselves.
Dialysis patient Mr Anthony Boey is one of the many people who live with kidney failure and he too, is under the support of NKF throughout his dialysis sessions and adjusting to a new lifestyle altogether after learning about his condition. According to Mr Boey, a fourhour long dialysis session, done three times a week, costs about S$3,000 a month, including medicine and doctor consultations.
Fortunately, the hefty cost of dialysis is usually subsidised for the patients. For the low-income patients, the dialysis fee is usually subsidised by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and NKF. For the middle-income patients, NKF engages the management to provide subsidies for the patients, so that they are able to cope with the dialysis fees as well as their life expenses.
Beyond financial aid, patients would eventually receive help not just in the medical aspect of their lives, but for their mental and emotional well-being as well.
“Sometimes, the younger patients would have to deal with issues surrounding the family members of their potential spouses questioning them about why would they want to marry a sick person when there are plenty of other people out there who are perfectly healthy and happy.” mentioned Ms Lua.
Counselling sessions offered by NKF’s medical social workers has helped these patients deal with the new life they find themselves in and offer support whenever these patients find themselves the need to talk and raise issues about their conditions and how their health is impacting their lives.