Master Dominic Boabeng, a 13-year-old student of Gomoa Afransi Methodist Basic School, has lauded the government’s free dialysis policy but appealed for more dialysis machines and decentralised services to reduce waiting times and improve care for patients with kidney disease.
Boabeng, who has undergone thrice-weekly dialysis sessions at Cape Coast Teaching Hospital for the past year, described the strain of traveling long distances and waiting hours due to limited equipment. “I come here three times a week, very early in the morning, and sometimes I have to wait because there aren’t enough machines,” he said tearfully during a visit by the Ghana News Agency (GNA).
Leading fellow dialysis patients in observance of World Kidney Day, Boabeng called on the government, corporate bodies, and philanthropists to invest in additional machines and decentralised facilities capable of 24-hour operations. Patients noted that equipment shortages often caused overcrowding, long waits, and worsened symptoms like fatigue, swelling, and high blood pressure.
Untreated end-stage renal disease, they said, can quickly escalate to heart attacks, strokes, or coma, while families bear heavy financial burdens traveling to distant facilities such as Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra or private centres. Boabeng revealed that transport costs alone had strained his family’s finances, nearly disrupting his education and his dream of becoming a medical doctor.
Another patient, Mr. Eugene Okai, from Twifo Paraso, commended the free dialysis initiative but echoed concerns about limited machines, urging for round-the-clock services to reduce complications, prevent incomplete treatments, and ensure equitable access for rural communities.
Journalist Thomas Cann, who has lived with kidney disease for 13 years, noted rising demand for the free programme, attracting patients from regions including Western, Western North, and Eastern.
Later in the day, Cape Coast Teaching Hospital organised a health screening in Moree near Cape Coast, led by Dr. Kelvin Denanyoh, who screened over 300 residents. He identified diabetes, hypertension, chronic glomerulonephritis, overuse of nephrotoxic drugs, and herbal medicines as major causes of chronic kidney disease in Ghana.
Dr. Denanyoh advised preventive measures including maintaining healthy blood pressure and sugar levels, low-salt diets rich in fruits and vegetables, regular exercise, quitting smoking, and avoiding nephrotoxic substances. For end-stage cases, he stressed early detection, regular dialysis, transplant options, and careful management of complications.
World Kidney Day 2026, observed under the theme “Kidney Health for All: Caring for people, protecting the planet,” highlighted the vital role of kidney health and connected disease prevention to environmental sustainability through screenings, education, and awareness campaigns.
This observance brought attention to the urgent need for improved infrastructure, decentralised dialysis services, and continued public awareness to ensure equitable access to life-saving kidney care across Ghana.
