NKTI to accept Kidney Patients Under Investigation (PUIs)
QUEZON CITY, March 30 — The National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI), the country’s leading tertiary medical specialty center specializing in the prevention, diagnosis, rehabilitation and treatment of kidney and allied diseases, announced on March 27, 2020 that they will accept KIDNEY PATIENTS UNDER INVESTIGATION (PUIs) who are dependent on dialysis, and not patients positive for COVID-19.
NKTI earlier ruled out admitting PUIs since the hospital is dealing with highly immunocompromised patients including transplant patients. However, as the health system struggles to contain the virus, NKTI were forced by the circumstances to manage PUIs as COVID-19 designated centers are overwhelmed. “Currently, NKTI accepts only kidney patients under investigation (PUIs) who are dependent on dialysis. They are managed in tents situated around our emergency room. They are not admitted inside our main facilities to protect our immunocompromised patients especially our post-transplantations,” Dr. Rose Marie Liquete, Executive Director of NKTI said in a statement last Friday.
Preventive Measures
As means to strengthen the prevention and control measures against the spread of COVID-19, NKTI implemented the following guidelines for the protection of patients and other individuals within the hospital:
· Cancellation of Pre-Transplant Orientation (PTO) until further notice;
· Processing of fund assistance / guarantee letters shall be limited to only 50 patients per day;
· Hemodialysis (HD), Peritoneal Dialysis (PD) and Chemotherapy Units shall continue to operate;
· Endoscopy procedures shall be limited only to emergency cases;
· No elective surgery/ operation for Urology, Vascular, General Surgery cases;
·Outpatients services shall temporarily close its operation until further notice. Operation of private clinics is discretionary to the consultants/ occupants.
Meanwhile, NKTI Hospital facility extension, a temporary space solution in support of the frontliners fight against COVID-19 virus were committed by StarXPO.
NKTI also appealed to the public for donations of masks (surgical, N95 Type 3, FFP3), goggles or face shields, gloves, surgical caps and shoe covers (clean and sterile), gowns (surgical, fluid-resistant, long-sleeved). Food donations should be brought to the Dietary Division through Socorro Balderamos – local 1072/1073.
Donations in cash can be deposited directly to National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Land Bank of the Philippines, West Avenue, Quezon City, Account Number0236-1306-14. Interested parties may call NKTI-Public Information Office at Trunkline: 8-981-0300 loc.1008 or e-mail: pro@nkti.gov.ph. (GC-PIA IDPD/NKTI) –
source https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1037604