The parliament of Uganda is reportedly inspecting a proposed law, that will enable kidney transplants in the country for the first time, bringing hope to thousands of patients.
Currently, the available option of getting an operation done from abroad costs around $30,000, making it unaffordable for several patients. This makes most of the patients live on dialysis for as long as possible.
The lone ward at Kiruddu National Referral Hospital near the capital of Kampala is the only public health facility to offer dialysis. As many as 200 patients attend the facility regularly, and many of them have to travel long distances.
The clinic operates two shifts daily, and around 30 patients can be treated in each shift. This results in the ward operating at almost full capacity and there is hardly any time to prepare the patients for dialysis.
If this proposal is passed, Uganda will join a short list of countries within Africa, including Kenya, South Africa, and Tunisia, that have both health facilities and regulations for organ transplants within their borders.
Currently, Ugandan kidney patients mostly prefer India and Turkey. To prevent the trafficking of organs, only relatives can be donors and the trips need to be approved by the Uganda Medical Board.
If parliament approves the proposal, the process will be simple, and the cost will come down to around $8,000. Those favoring the proposal also agree that Uganda needs to maintain strict regulations to ensure that there is no abuse.
The proposal also urges establishing specialized transplant facilities in the country and creating a national waiting list of organ recipients. In Mulago, Kampala, an operation theatre has already been set up within the main hospital. Besides, organ banks would also be formed for donors.
Dr. Fualal Jane Odubu, Chairperson, Uganda Medical Board, stated that they are also considering skin banks for burn patients and corneal transplants for eyes.
About 100 Ugandan surgeons, post-surgery specialists, and nurses have already been trained from abroad, mostly specializing in kidney transplantations.
Source credit: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-62916880