Butuan docs, nurses form alliance to address rise in kidney patients
BUTUAN CITY , Philippines – Due to the alarming increase of cases of chronic kidney failure here and in the Caraga region, a group of prominent doctors, nurses and concerned individuals has formed a volunteer advocacy group called the Butuan Kidney Alliance.
At present, government-owned hospitals and even private hospitals in Caraga do not offer free treatment or even free dialysis for kidney failure, also known as end-stage renal disease.
According to Department of Health statistics, one Filipino develops chronic kidney failure every hour, and 10,000 Filipinos must undergo dialysis every year in order to stay alive.
Chronic kidney failure is the seventh leading cause of death in the Philippines.
Dr. Rene Vargas, a former Butuan City councilor, and Dr. Wilfred Mallonga, along with retired nurses, including former deans of nursing colleges, said in a media forum at the regional office of the Public Information Office last Friday that the rising cases of kidney failure in this city alone encouraged them to form the advocacy group to prevent more people from contracting the disease through information dissemination.
Present at the media forum were the other lead convenors of the group, including registered nurses Zenaida Lagnada, Sonia Martinez and Perla Ponce.
Another lead convenor of the alliance is businessman and philanthropist Crispin Young, father of Fr. Saturnino Urios University president Fr. John Young.
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