6 hospitals now offering free dialysis services 

Public dialysis services are now available at six hospitals across Guyana as the Health Ministry expands access to treatment and seeks to reduce the need for patients to travel long distances for care.
The services are available at Diamond Regional Hospital, Lima Regional Hospital, Bath Regional Hospital, Number 75 Regional Hospital, De Kinderen Regional Hospital, and Enmore Regional Hospital.
Head of the Internal Medicine Department at Diamond Regional Hospital, Dr Keisha Defreitas, told the Department of Public Information (DPI) on Tuesday that more than 50 patients have already received dialysis treatment at the facility.
She said the service is intended to meet the needs of patients in Region Four.
“With assistance from the nephrology department at GPHC, we are able to identify patients who really need support for the dialysis sessions, and we prioritise them,” Dr Defreitas said.
Dialysis services at Diamond Regional Hospital operate seven days a week, with the capacity to treat six patients at a time. The facility caters for both inpatients and outpatients, including patients who are hospitalised and require dialysis as part of their treatment.
Dr Defreitas said that, due to staffing constraints, the hospital is currently operating 12-hour shifts from 07:00h to 19:00h. She noted that staff sometimes remain beyond 19:00h depending on how the dialysis sessions progress.
At Bath Regional Hospital, about 16 patients have benefited from the service since it commenced on September 22.
Medical Superintendent Dr Daniel Robertson said on Wednesday that the facility currently has two dialysis machines in operation, with more patients expected to access the service.
Region Six Regional Health Officer Dr Vinashri Khirodhar also told DPI that Number 75 Village Regional Hospital has two dialysis machines in operation.
The expansion of dialysis services is expected to reduce the distance patients have to travel for treatment and ease the burden on patients and their families.
Persons requiring dialysis are being encouraged to visit any of the six hospitals to access the service and arrange their treatment sessions.