World Kidney Day (WKD) is a worldwide health campaign to raise the awareness of the vital role our kidneys play in the overall health of a person. This campaign also aims to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems.

World Kidney Day is an annual event that takes place worldwide on the second Thursday in March. Hundreds of organizations and individuals launch initiatives and events on WKD to help raise awareness of kidney disease.

The theme of WKD changes every year and on this year 2024, the theme will be :
“Kidney Health For All - Advancing Equitable Access to Care and Optimal Medication Practice.”

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a worldwide health problem which affect more than 850 million people worldwide and resulted in over 3.1 million deaths in 2019. Kidney disease ranks as the 8th leading cause of death worldwide. It is projected to be the 5th leading cause of death by 2040.

CKD treatment in the past few decades have been focused on preparing for and delivering kidney replacement therapies such as Haemodialysis, Peritoneal Dialysis and Kidney Transplantation. However, these current CKD treatment options at best only extends the life of these CKD patients but with compromise of the quality and quantity of life with dialysis associated complications such as life-threatening infections, cardiovascular diseases, etc. The increase in medication burden to the patients and the need for dietary restriction also degrade the quality of life in these CKD patients.

Recent therapeutic breakthroughs in the past 10 years have reversed some of these shortcomings of the current treatment approach to CKD. These breakthroughs offer opportunities to prevent or delay kidney disease and mitigate complications such as cardiovascular disease and kidney failure, thus prolonging the quality and quantity of life for these CKD patients.

These new therapies should be easily accessible to all patients with CKD. However, there are existing barriers that blocked the accessibility of CKD patients to these new treatments. These barriers are:
(1) lack of awareness of the disease.
(2) insufficient knowledge or confidence of the health professionals with these newer therapies.
(3) shortages of kidney specialists
(4) treatment costs contributing to disparities in accessing treatments, particularly in low-and-middle-income patients, but also in some high-income patients.


To overcome these barriers, a multi-pronged approach with focus towards CKD awareness and expansion of the healthcare workforce is needed.

1. Health policies to prevent CKD

Health policies that integrate kidney care into existing health programs, secure funding for kidney care, and disseminate health knowledge to the public and the healthcare workforce are needed to achieve the goal of equitable access to high quality kidney care.

2. Healthcare delivery to remove barriers to kidney care

Limited health policies focus, inadequate patient and provider education, lack of resources for high-quality care, and limited access to affordable medication can all lead to suboptimal kidney care. It is essential that we adopt a comprehensive, patient-centered, and locally oriented approaches to identify and remedy barriers to high-quality kidney care.

3. Adequate healthcare professionals to improve equitable access

Shortage of primary care professionals and kidney specialists requires increased training capacity and minimizing loss of healthcare providers. Appropriate CKD screening and adherence to clinical practice guideline recommendations are key to successful implementation of effective and safe treatment strategies.

4. Empowering patients and communities to improve health outcomes

CKD patients struggle to access care and medication due to high costs and misinformation. Patient’s awareness about CKD risk factors such as diabetes, hypertension, and obesity can bring large benefits to prevent CKD and its deadly short- and long-term complications. Involving patients in advocacy organizations and local communities will empower them to make informed decisions and improve their health outcomes.

 
This article was contributed by Dr William Luong Chau

For more information regarding World Kidney Day 2024, please click the following links:

World Kidney Day : Web Link 1

World Kidney Day : Web Link 2