RIUT starts kidney operations on trial basis

Health official says OPD, emergency and other departments will become operational in one week

RAWALPINDI:

The Rawalpindi Institute of Urology and Kidney Transplant (RIUT) — a dedicated health facility meant to provide quality treatment to patients suffering from acute kidney diseases — has started operations on a trial basis.

The RIUT, which could not be made functional since the foundation of the institute was laid in 2012by Shehbaz Sharif as the Punjab chief minister, was converted into a dedicated medical facility two years back for treating Covid-19patients after the outbreak of the infectious disease.

The RIUT administration is now focused on going full-steam ahead with its plans to make the institute functional by opening the hospital’s emergency, outpatient department and dialysis centres initially.

 The requisite equipment for the treatment and transplant facility has already been purchased.

 RIUT Medical Superintendent (MS) Dr Tahir Rizvi said that around four to five patients were being treated on a trial basis daily at the facility after they were being referred by the Benazir Bhutto Hospital.

The MS, who is also the acting charge of RIUT, said that over 97 per cent of work had been completed at the health facility and the outdoor patient department, emergency and other departments would become operational in a week.

With 30 state-of-the-art dialysis machines, 30 people will be able to have dialysis at the same time.

Kidney stones will be treated with a laser using lithotripsy machines at RIUT which will be the first government hospital for the treatment of kidney diseases in the Rawalpindi division.

Dr Tahir said that RIUT has around 30 dialysis machines and after the completion of the project, the burden on city hospitals for treating kidney patients would be decreased.

He said that the provincial government had provided the required funds, and the process of tenders and quotations was in the final stages for the completion of the project.

 Sources said that at the RIUT, 64 vacancies of technical and subordinate staff have also been filled.

 The first phase of deployment of professors, specialist doctors and nursing staff has been completed and the process of further appointments against the vacant posts will be completed soon.

Dr Tahir said that around600 staff, including doctors, nurses, paramedical and related staff, would be recruited to provide the best medical facilities to the residents of Rawalpindi and its adjacent areas.

He said that the Punjab government was determined to upgrade the existing health facilities in Rawalpindi, for which all available resources were being utilised to bring a visible change in the delivery of health services.

 The MS said that RIUT would be a state-of-the-art urology centre of its kind in the region, providing all medical and surgical facilities to urology and kidney patients.

Health experts have been urging the government to prioritise the project, as the rising number of kidney-related diseases in the country as well as its mortality rates increasing.

 They further said that the government must make RIUT operational at the earliest for the treatment of patients who could not afford private treatment.

With additional input from APP