New haemodialysis unit to operate by end-of-year in Paphos

By the end of the year, a new haemodialysis unit will operate at the Paphos General Hospital it was announced on Thursday.

Dr. Lakis Yioukkas Director of the hospital’s nephrology clinic noted that the building of the new unit is expected to be equipped and to start operating by the end of the year.

Equipment is to include dialysis machines, a new water production system, dialysis station panels, beds and chairs, monitors, defibrillators, and electrocardiograms.

The unit is based on European specifications and has the capacity for up to 27 dialysis stations.

A separate haemodialysis area will be built for HIV-positive patients and those with infectious diseases.

The unit is under guarantee for at least 15 years based on the planning that was done.

It includes a reception and registration area, examination rooms, infirmary, four dialysis stations for short hospitalisation, two dialysis stations for people with infectious diseases with a separate discreet entrance, staff changing rooms, and auxiliary areas.

On the first floor 27 nursing stations will be created and a living room for patients along with auxiliary spaces, while on the second floor there will be a rest room for the doctor on duty.

The entire building is designed for easy access for people with disabilities.

Chronic problems faced by patients in the Paphos district are expected to be solved with the unit’s operation, Yioukkas said.

He detailed that the new unit will have a breastfeeding room and will house a peritoneal dialysis chamber, as well as a small surgery.

The haemodialysis unit of the general hospital currently serves 70 patients who undergo treatment three times a week, while the number of patients with chronic final stage kidney disease is on a steady increase of 10 to 15 per cent.

The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes mellitus, which has now become a pandemic, the doctor said, and half of the dialysis patients are diabetic. The second cause is hypertension, which also damages the kidneys, and the third cause is heredity.

Yioukkas also mentioned as a cause cystic medullary disease of the kidneys, which is hereditary and observed only in Paphos.