Report Backs Need For Political Parties To Upgrade Chronic Kidney Disease Polici

Kidney Health Australia today said that the latest report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare titled 'Comorbidity of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and chronic kidney disease in Australia', vindicated and supported the organisation's call for action on change to Government health policy on Chronic Kidney Disease in Australia.

Anne Wilson CEO of Kidney Health Australia

Both the Government and the Opposition need to announce policies which would fund the screening of high risk older patients at a GP level to indentify, prevent and manage Chronic Kidney Disease.

The report found.. "Individually, cardiovascular disease (CVD), diabetes and chronic kidney disease (CKD) are serious illnesses that contribute significantly to deaths and levels of ill health in the Australian population. When they occur together, the negative effects on health status and health services go beyond the sum of the effects of each single disease."

Anne Wilson CEO of Kidney Health Australia said the findings of the report echoed the comments of overseas experts who recently addressed the Kidney Health Australia International Summit on Chronic Kidney Disease, who advised the most significant way of dealing with Kidney Disease was to introduce opportunistic screening of high risk patients.

Ms Wilson said, "the report found among people in hospital with chronic kidney disease (not counting day- stay hospital admissions for dialysis) nearly 70% had at least one form of cardiovascular disease (CVD) recorded. CVD also contributed to about 76% of deaths among people with chronic kidney disease."

"Chronic Kidney Disease is a public national health problem which needs a direct national public health response, not a watered down program that exists in the current system and does not address the issues surrounding Chronic Kidney Disease adequately."

Dr Tim Mathew, Medical Director of Kidney Health Australia today said that preventative strategies for Kidney Disease had been identified and proven effective but are not in place in Australia

Dr Mathew said the main elements of a successful CKD program in Australia would include:

The need for CKD publicity campaigns aimed at increasing the communities awareness of CKD and its adverse impact on health An emphasis on the need for programs targeting high risk groups for early detection and best care plans in high risk groups. All CKD programs should be established and pursued in a collaborative fashion with diabetes and cardiovascular disease in recognition of the strong clinical overlap The need to emphasize the prominence of CKD as an independent and strong cardiovascular risk factor An understanding that the task of early detection and management of detected cases was one for primary care and that only a small proportion of those with CKD needed to be referred for specialist care. And the essential need for a national surveillance program to monitor the incidence and prevalence of CKD (in all its stages) over time. Kidney Health Australia website

MORE