, patient joyce swallow, dr faisal ehsan (consultant anaesthetist), dr suneeta teckchandani (consultant acute physician), dr mansoor ali (consultant renal physician), dr re.jpg)
Colleagues from the Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) group have been hands on to help raise awareness of with patients, visitors and colleagues.
Consultant Renal Physician, Dr Mansoor Ali told CHFT: "The whole day was really successful - a first for CHFT set up to coincide with World Kidney Day. We had engagement and involvement of colleagues from across the Trust and patients who joined the teams both at CRH and HRI to share with the public following their episodes of AKI".
One patient, Adelaide Stevens, wasn't well enough to attend the event since her recent discharge from hospital, though she did send in a letter of appreciation and her experience as an inpatient for the team to share. Here's a short snippet of what she wrote to Dr Ali:
"I'm pleased to report that I've been living independently for a month, and I've been signed off by all the care staff who have been helping me to resume normal living.
"The symptoms of loss of memory and bladder control still persist, but are improving with advice, practice and patience. It's wonderful to be at home and functioning fairly normally once more."
Dr Ali said, "Just this short excerpt from Kath's letter shows the impact AKI can have. For me the whole purpose of the event was to help raise awareness and to remember how valuable kidneys are and the importance of looking after them in the event of an acute illness.
"We only have one pair of kidneys. When healthy they help look after our blood pressure as well as, believe it or not, keep our bones healthy - and following a few simple steps will mean they stay healthy:
- Drink plenty of water
- Stop smoking
- Keep fit and exercise
- Eat well
- Reduce the amount of salt you eat
- Keep blood sugars under control if diabetic
Dr Ali added "I'd like to personally thank Medication Safety Officer Anita Hill who has been instrumental in the whole organisation of the day.
"Also thanks to Dr Andy Hardy, Dr Suneeta Teckchandani, Dr Karen Mitchell, Dr Faisal Ehsan, Marrem Claveria, Dr Resham Arain, renal secretary Adele Mann, colleagues from the pharmacy and the post graduate department, Asifa Ali from Research and Development HRI and special thanks to the patients Joyce Swallow, Kathryn Hadfield and Adelaide Stephens for giving their time." Attachment shows stand at CRH.
If you'd like to know more about AKI there a number of websites you can visit:
www.thinkkidneys.nhs.uk