Imagine a time when your spouse, sibling, child, or even yourself, had to be responsible for connecting tubing and inserting needles into your arm for medical treatment. It is quite unthinkable for most of us as we are used to these procedures being done by medical professionals.
But that was the situation at the Self Dependency Dialysis Unit (SDDU) at Alexandra Hospital before KDF took over its management in 1996. Mdm Tan (not her real name or picture) is one of KDF’s first patients and one of the remaining few who had that unique experience.
“In the past at Alexandra Hospital (AH), almost everything had to be done by ourselves. Caregivers were taught how to insert the needles and prepare the dialyser and bloodlines (tubing) for dialysis. My husband learnt how to do these procedures and he needled me every time. There were nurses of course, but very few, so we did things ourselves,” Mdm Tan shared in Hokkien.
It was hardly easy for her husband, Mr Tan (not his real name), who not only had to accept his wife’s condition, but also had to shoulder the responsibility of inserting needles into her arm to prepare her for dialysis. “Of course it was scary (having to do needling), its flesh and blood, but there was no other way,” Mr Tan remarked.
He was however, proud of having mastered this ‘skill’. “The nurses were very fierce in the day; they’d scold you if you fumbled or did not perform a procedure well. For example, when dialysis was over caregivers had to remove the needles, and if we did not apply pressure to the site correctly, you’d immediately hear a voice screaming: ‘who taught you to do that!’ That was the kind of training that we went through back then, we were scolded until we did things right,” he shared proudly.
It was not until several months later that KDF changed the structure of care at the KDF-AH dialysis centre, relieving these responsibilities from the caregiver. Till today, registered nurses perform these procedures at all KDF dialysis centres.
Then verses Now
While the KDF-AH dialysis centre may have ceased operations in 2005, long-time patients like Mdm Tan hold fond – but gradually fading – memories of the place.
“At the AH centre there wasn’t a reception and waiting area, once you entered you see the dialysis stations immediately. The seating layout is also different and the people are different. It was mostly local nurses in the past so they could communicate with me in dialect, but now, sometimes I need my neighbour to help translate what the nurses are saying,” Mdm Tan said as she gave her neighbour a small nod of gratitude.
“But the quality of care and financial help we received from KDF has been good and hasn’t changed since then. For that I am thankful, otherwise we would not have been able to afford treatment,” she added.
Having been a KDF patient for 20 years now, Mdm Tan currently has her dialysis at our San Wang Wu Ti dialysis centre in Chinatown. You’d imagine that for a veteran patient like her, dialysis would have become normality, but time had also taken its toll.
While she was once been determined to live well with her condition by accepting dialysis treatments, as the months and years go by, feelings of futility seeped in and grew exponentially, as nothing had really changed for the better.
“It’s quite meaningless really, we’re just waiting for time. We dialyse until the day we die,” Mdm Tan said sullenly. While upsetting to hear, there is some truth to what she said. Unlike most medical treatment where you seek to get cured after a few sessions, dialysis is for life, as once our kidneys fail it is irreversible.
In sickness and in health
Life is unpredictable to say the least. To Mdm Tan and Mr Tan, unpredictability came in the form of a diagnosis.
In 2010, Mr Tan was forced to start dialysis after he was admitted to the hospital due to extreme body aches. He had actually known that his kidneys were failing for some time, but was adamant about not starting dialysis.
“I never wanted to start. It’s not like I could be cured in one or two sessions, it was something I had to depend on for the rest of my life. Where was I to find the money?” he said exasperatingly. “Seeing my wife go through all that and now even myself, it was just so complicated.”
“Now, I try not to think about it since there is nothing I can do. It's a new day regardless of whether I’m happy or worried. I still have some CPF that can cover my dialysis fees for now, and we’ll just have to see how it goes from there,” Mr Tan said matter-of-factly.
Kidney Dialysis Foundation
Both Mdm Tan and Mr Tan currently receive subsidised dialysis treatment at KDF and pay $20 per session. They are both well into their silver years and have been blessed with extremely supportive children, who were just short of entering teen hood when Mdm Tan first started her dialysis at KDF. Their children are now working adults who help to share the financial burden of Mdm Tan and Mr Tan.
As KDF celebrates our 20th Anniversary this year, we look back at our humble beginnings and at the lives we touched along the way. Mdm Tan is one of several patients who have been with us since the very beginning, and we take comfort in knowing that we have served her and the community well for the past two decades.
Aid us in our life-saving mission. Support our patients by making a small contribution via www.kdf.org.sg or https://www.giving.sg/kidney-dialysis-foundation today. It has been 20 good years, and with your support it will be many more to come. All donations are entitled to 2.5x tax deduction and will help to subsidise their treatment costs and lighten their financial burden.
