Date:22/01/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/01/22/stories/2005012216080500.htm

Andhra Pradesh

YSR for affordable medicare

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, JAN. 21. The Chief Minister, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, has urged medical practitioners to find innovative and affordable treatment for people suffering from various ailments.

Speaking at the 2nd Asian chapter's meeting of the International Society for Peritoneal Dialysis (ISPD) organised here on Friday, Dr. Reddy said PD was an effective alternative for kidney transplants.

People could go in for PD, as getting a kidney from close family members was a difficult task. Similarly, adaptability to a transplanted kidney was more difficult, he added.

Advance technology

He hoped the three-day meet would deliberate on bringing advanced PD technology to Asia.

He exhorted the doctors to take science forward so that the patients under PD treatment are benefited.

The Chief Minister said that during his medical college days, he had never heard about PD. The advances in science were amazing and hoped the doctors would make optimum use of the opportunity provided to them.

Patient care

The organising chairman of ISPD, K. S. Nayak, said the organisation was formed to disseminate worldwide information on advances in peritoneal dialysis technology and clinical applications for improved patient care.

Alternative

He said PD could serve as an alternative to kidney transplants, especially for persons without a family donor. The treatment was patient-friendly and convenient.

Lakshmi Narasamma, the oldest surviving patient in India who had adopted continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis, lit the lamp to inaugurate the conference.

The chairman of the Scientific Advisory committee of ISPD, Georgi Abraham, president, Dialysis Society of India, Amit Gupta, and others were present. Around 1,000 delegates are attending the conference.