|
Glenda Smithers knows more about renal services in Young than most, with her husband John having been diagnosed with renal disease seven years ago.
Three times a week she has to get him up at 3.30am to be picked up at 4.30am and taken to Canberra for dialysis, and he doesn’t return until 3.30 in the afternoon.
“My husband is getting very worn out from the travelling,” she said, “It’s really starting to take its toll.”
“What we think is needed is a full blown dialysis unit here in Young.”
She said the unit could be used by surrounding towns and take the strain off the bigger hospitals.
Mrs Smithers attended the recent renal services community consultations organised by Murrumbidgee Local District Health (MLAH) held at Young District Hopsital.
The forums were gearted to to gather information on renal services and future needs from local patients, carers and clinicians.
Mrs Smithers said the forum gave her a glimmer of hope that things could improve.
“I think that they’re starting to get the message they need it here,” she said, “I felt we were getting somewhere, getting more advanced than the one last year.”
However, she said when or how long before services improved remained to be seen and she doubted whether anything would be done in time to help her husband.
She said she had been hopeful in the past, but almost became resigned to the fact that nothing would happen.
She said she was a little bit frustrated with the process.
When the self-managed renal unit was opened, which was now only being used by one person, she was under the impression it would turn into a full blown dialysis unit, however, this had not yet been the case, she said.
Another meeting attendee Garry Foster, who is carer for his wife Gwen, said he’d also been told the self-managed unit would become a full blown one.
“All they do is talk,” he said, “they have all these inquiries, but all they do it pass the buck around to one another.”
He said wasn’t impressed by the meeting and that the waiting was the hardest part.
|
Log in to explore the world's most comprehensive database of dialysis centres for free! 
Professional dialysis recruitment
