00:01Leading kidney health experts surveyed over 300 dialysis units across the country and
00:08found the systems really failing the most vulnerable.
00:11Around 80% of regions have wait lists and some of those wait times are spanning years.
00:17About a quarter of dialysis units actually have machines lying idle because there's
00:22not enough money or staff to use them.
00:25On top of that, some patients are receiving shorter or less frequent dialysis than they
00:30actually need.
00:32The President of the Australian Society of Nephrology is Sharon Ford and she spoke to us
00:37about the current strain on the system.
00:41We know that dialysis is a life-saving treatment for people with kidney failure.
00:45Most people need dialysis three times a week, every week, just to stay alive and the report
00:50found that many units across Australia are already full and some are operating at or
00:56above what would be considered usual or safe capacity.
01:00It's a very aggressive treatment and it can leave people quite wiped.
01:05Some are having to stay in motels so that means time away from family and time off work.
01:11We know that First Nations people are at high risk of chronic kidney disease so it's often
01:17them that are having to do these long distances and some are even having to relocate off country
01:22to be closer to dialysis units.
01:25And what's the government response to this situation?
01:29So we reached out to every state and territory about the situation.
01:33Many came back and pointed to initiatives already in place to expand dialysis.
01:39But Tasmania and Queensland denied that there was any rationing.
01:42They said they were using things like at home dialysis as an alternate.
01:48Now, home dialysis isn't right for everyone, but experts say it's a pathway forward that
01:54we need to be properly considering and using more of as we see a growing rate of chronic
02:00kidney disease.
02:02Early detection is also key here and the early stages of kidney disease are often silent, but
02:09people can ask their GP for a kidney health check, which is particularly important if you've
02:13got risk factors like diabetes or high blood pressure.
02:19Preparation of the
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