By Derek Schlennstedt
The kidney; its importance is paramount to the body’s overall health, but this bean-shaped internal organ is often forgotten or goes unnoticed.
Last week from 5-11 March, Kidney Health Australia held its annual ‘Kidney Health Week’ to raise awareness about chronic kidney disease which is prevalent across Australia, including in Yarra Ranges.
Kidney disease is responsible for more Australian deaths than prostate cancer, breast cancer, and road deaths, but despite these high statistics it remains relatively unknown and usually goes unnoticed.
Healesville’s Beverley Schmolling knows all too well the importance of kidney health. Her husband, Ken Schmolling passed away from the disease.
Also a key member of the Save Healesville Hospital group, Beverley was instrumental in ensuring new dialysis machines were placed at Healesville Hospital to reduce the travel time for patients who had to travel to Maroondah Hospital and even further for dialysis.
She says the new machines have made it much easier for those with chronic kidney disease who previously had to drive long distances to receive dialysis.
“You used to have to travel to Ferntree Gully, Maroondah, Monash and Peter James centre in Box Hill.
“You’d go three days a week, and it was a lot of travelling,” she said.
Kidney failure, which occurs when kidneys are unable to remove waste and balance fluids, requires constant monitoring and dialysis to remove waste and unhealthy water in the blood, a four to five hour procedure, three times per week.
Diabetes, high blood pressure, smoking, obesity, age, and family history all increase the possibility of developing chronic kidney disease.
Statistics by the Australian Bureau of Statistics have shown that 29.9 per cent of people over 18 and living in the Yarra Valley are obese and that 24 per cent have high blood pressure – both high-risk factors for kidney disease. Eastern Health’s Healesville Hospital is urging people to take control of their health.
Matt Harvey Acting Operations Manager for Eastern Health Integrated Renal Services says that to reduce the impact and development of kidney disease it is important for people to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
“Maintaining a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise and healthy diet is vital – this means reduced fats, reduced salts and drinking plenty of fluid; two to three litres per day,” he said.
While the focus is on reducing the number of people who develop the disease, those living in the Healesville and surrounding areas have only positive comments on the convenient and close location to receive dialysis treatments.
Bernard McDermott, a patient at Healesville hospital who lives in Yarra Junction, says the new facilities have made it much easier for him to receive treatment and that it had a wonderful community feel to it.
“It’s wonderful, close to home and it really is marvellous, there is great staff, we even get sandwiches from the local bakery and everything is just really hunky-dory.”
“There’s a really nice community feel to it and it isn’t like the big busy hospitals we were having to go to before,” he said.
Mr Harvey said Kidney Awareness Week was a fantastic opportunity to highlight the importance of kidney health, and he urged people to constantly monitor their kidney health on an ongoing basis by seeing a GP.
“We suggest seeing a GP and getting a blood test annually which will give you an indication of your kidney function.
“It’s a great week to raise awareness but it’s also something that people need to be aware of on an ongoing basis,” he said.
