Cynthia Lui MP
Member for Cook
Media Release
A summit will be held in Cairns on 27 November to develop a plan for the delivery of renal services to Torres Strait, Cape York and Northern Peninsula Area residents over the next five years.
Member for Cook Cynthia Lui said the summit would attract about 40 participants from government and non-government health services, renal medicine experts and primary health care funding bodies.
“The aim of the summit will be to develop a Renal Service Plan for the Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service that will focus heavily on the early detection and prevention of chronic kidney disease,’’ she said.
“The Palaszczuk Governments $5 million funding boost to renal services up north will mean more Queenslanders will have access to these vital services. “A total of $571,000 has been allocated to the Torres and Cape HHS through this package,’’ he said.
Ms Lui said once people with chronic kidney disease pass into end-stage renal failure their only options are to go on dialysis for life or have a kidney transplant if they want to stay alive.
“These are radical, life-changing options, so avoiding kidney disease in the first place is the very best medicine of all,” she said.
“Improved health promotion and prevention strategies and earlier detection will be key components of the proposed Torres and Cape HHS Renal Service Plan.
“But the plan also will look at improved treatment options for those who have progressed to end-stage renal failure, so they can access treatment, such as dialysis, closer to home.
“As part of this process, the Torres and Cape HHS has created a new, dedicated Renal Service to oversee current and future services in the region.
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Queenslanders are four times more likely to die from chronic kidney disease than non-Indigenous Queenslanders.
“So, it’s important that we have extra capacity to deliver services here in the Torres and Cape HHS region.’’
Ms Lui said nurse-assisted dialysis services on Thursday Island already had been expanded in mid–2017, with the number of dialysis chairs increasing from six to nine and the number of patients also increasing from six to nine.
“Prior to the establishment of the Thursday Island dialysis unit in March 2015, all patients would have had to relocate to Cairns or elsewhere to access assisted dialysis,” said the Member for Cook.
“Now, if clinically suitable, they can have their treatment on Thursday Island, closer to home, family and friends.”
Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Board Chair Bob McCarthy said kidney disease was a growing problem in the Torres Strait, NPA and Cape York regions.
“Some of the factors increasing the risk of kidney disease in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities include diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, obesity and smoking,’’ Mr McCarthy said.
“Currently, about 4391 out of 21,537 Torres and Cape HHS residents have some level of chronic kidney disease.
“However, we know about three-quarters of those affected residents have only a mild form of kidney disease, which could be prevented from getting worse with appropriate clinical management and lifestyle changes.
“Through management, education and health promotion, our aim is to reduce the overall number of our residents who contract kidney disease and reduce the number of those with kidney disease from progressing to full end-stage renal failure.
“That’s why we established our new Renal Service, to oversee and coordinate this work and collaborate with other service providers to avoid duplication of services and identify any gaps in services in our region.’’
Mr McCarthy said as well as the patients undergoing nurse-assisted dialysis at Thursday Island and Cooktown, the Torres and Cape HHS also currently had 12 patients throughout the region undertaking self-dialysis at home with equipment supplied by Queensland Health, or using provided self-care chairs such as those at Bamaga Hospital – and soon on Thursday Island.
State Government funding for renal services generally in Queensland – including dialysis – had increased from about $220.4 million in 2012–13 to $269.5 million in 2017–18.
ENDS
Media Contact – Cook Electorate Office: 4223 1100
