30 Oct 2023

Some health experts have underscored the need for a collaborative research to advance kidney care and prevention in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Chronic kidney disease, they said, had become a burden on countries as it had become the leading cause of death hence the need to join efforts at both regional level and at African level to improve kidney health by expanding health promotion on prevention and treatment of all types of kidney diseases.

The experts aired their views during the third Botswana International Renal Conference organised by Nephrology Society of Botswana (NeSBo) in Maun on Friday.

Professor Saraladevi Naicker from South Africa had apprised them on the burden and causes of chronic disease in Africa.

Professor Naicker said analysis had revealed that the prevalence in Southern Africa stood at 10 per cent citing that hypertension was a huge problem. He emphasised the need to prevent kidney diseases.

The conference participants, who included health experts from different countries whom all agreed that prevention should be a principal strategy for reducing the burden of chronic kidney disease and better the lives of those at risk.

Nephrologist, Dr Gagoitsewe Saleshando said collaborative research was critical to make sense on what they were preaching as health experts.

He said there was need to look at treatment and ensure it did not worsen the situation while at the same time preaching to patients to go for dialysis.

“There is a lot we can do to improve our services and better the lives of those at risk if we work as a unit,” he added.

Giving on overview on kidney disease in Botswana, Dr Saleshando noted that 1 in 10 adults have some level of chronic kidney disease.

Sixty per cent of males aged above 47 years have hypertension, 35 per cent diabetes while 30 per cent are HIV positive, he said.

“We are privileged in Botswana as a lot is going in our favour, the government predominantly funds about 90 per cent of patients while 20 per cent are on medical aid and when it runs out, the government takes over,” he further said.

In other countries, Dr Saleshando said it was a different story as patients had to foot their medical bills. He also noted that there was good collaboration between the public and private health facilities citing that public health facilities did referrals to private facilities and vice versa.

He also pointed out that there was a greater potential for public-private partnership in the country and opportunity to expand renal care awareness programmes as well as technology advancement, citing remote monitoring among others.

A traditional healer, Mr Tirisanyo Sekakela said  traditional healers also attended to chronic kidney disease patients and the research could help them to establish the root cause of kidney failure and ensure that herbs issued to patients were of quality and good for use.

Some of the herbs, he said, could have side effects leading to kidney failure.

Mr Sekakela noted that they had referral books and thanked National AIDS and Health Promotion Agency for the assistance.

Going forward, he said they wanted to change the way they had been doing things as they aimed to package and brand their herbs just like those sold in pharmacies. Ends