Karnataka government is contemplating to set up an Institute of Nephrology at a cost of Rs.2 crore. The proposed Institute will come up in the former building of the Jayadeva Institute of Cardiology (JIC) in the complex of the Victoria Hospital. The location for the 'Nephro-urology unit' is finalised keeping in mind the availability of basic medical facilities like blood bank, diagnostic laboratories etc.

Although the cost of setting up a nephro-urology unit with a single dialysis machine works up anywhere between Rs. 20-25 lakh as the dialysis machine itself costs around Rs. 8 to 10 lakh, the amount of Rs.2 crore which is sanctioned through the Medical Education department could be adequate to provide the minimum facility, Dr. A B Maalakaraddy, minister for medical education, government of Karnataka, told Pharmabiz.com.

"The amount could be adequate as the Institute is coming up on a existing building which needs considerable renovation and upgrading. The State government has appointed a special officer Dr. GK Venkatesh, urologist, Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital to oversee the work, said Dr. Maalakaraddy.

The amount was sanctioned by the State government in the end of September 2003 and the work is expected to start soon. The facility would be ready for patients within a year, said the medical education minister.

The JIC was shifted to a new building almost two years ago. The former building in the premises of the Victoria hospitals has not been utilised. Although the board outside reads Proposed Institute of Nephro-Urology, it has been there for some time but now the institute has not yet been opened The project was not implemented though it was proposed almost two years ago, owing to shortage of funds, informed Dr. Maalakaraddy.

According to Dr. Venkatesh, some alterations had to be made to the building which housed the former cardiology facility.

The proposed institute will have an outpatient department for urology and it would also conduct urology surgeries. The nephrology department would provide dialysis service and conduct kidney transplant for poor patients. The services would be provided at subsidised rates almost one third of the cost provided at private health care providers.

The centre will be autonomous body run by the governing council. The first governing council meeting chaired by the Karnataka chief minister S M Krishna is expected to be held soon, Dr. Venkatesh said.

The most common renal disorders in the State are renal failures due to uncontrolled diabetes, blood pressure and urinary infections. The big task on hand is to educate our people on the prevention of renal disorders, which will bring down the number of new patients in the country, said Dr. Maalakaraddy.

The State is also facing an acute shortage of nephrologists, both in the private and government sector. The main reason for dearth of specialists is that there are hardly a handful of training centres in the State specialising in nephrology. Only now with the rise in renal disorders, the need for nephro-urology services is desperate and it will become even more acute as the population ages, because the incidence of nephro-urology diseases increases with age, said Dr. Maalakaraddy.

According to nephrologists in the State, there are three lakh patients suffering from renal failures in the country. In India, every year there are one lakh new additions to list of renal diseases. The demand for dialysis alone is eleven lakh patients apart from the existing ones. Only six percent of the patients go in for kidney transplant. Only two percent can avail of dialysis treatment and less than 0.5 percent can access peritoneal dialysis. Hence Nephrology is now being recognised as a distinct speciality in medical care.