During 2007/2008 Kidney Kids Scotland has once again assisted many Scottish children and their families. The charity has further continued to support hospitals all over Scotland, through the funding of much needed equipment and essential posts to support children with renal problems.
Kidney Kids Scotland would like to thank the Scottish people for their continuing generosity. We would also like to acknowledge the huge input made by Corporate Donations, not only financially but also in kind. On behalf of the children and families we have been able to help we thank you.
Funds are raised in several ways - Events, Sponsorship, Supermarket Collections, Corporation Donations and many others. This year has seen increased support from Companies and from individuals who have raised funds on our behalf. Once again we are very proud of the charity’s achievements which include –
Funding a team of Scottish children for the Transplant Games. For the last seven years we have sponsored a team of children from all over Scotland to attend “The Transplant Games”. This is a chance for these incredibly brave youngsters, who have had a transplant to show what they can do and enjoy themselves. This year the games were held in Sheffield from 7-10th August. Kidney Kids provided all of their clothing, transport and contributed towards their accommodation.
We also had another “Off the Road Day” organized as a bonding day for the children to enable them to get to know one another and share their problems, again reducing the feeling of isolation. This once more proved to be a very popular and successful day and was greatly enjoyed by all
A Data Manager has been funded for a 2nd year at Yorkhill Hospital and a haemodialysis chair has made life easier in their haemodialysis treatment room. Many of the children suffering from renal disease require haemodialysis treatment twice or three times weekly in order to stay well. Yorkhill, Glasgow is the only hospital in Scotland to carry out haemodialysis treatment on children. During haemodialysis there has to be access to the child’s blood stream, so this procedure must take place at Yorkhill Hospital with specially trained medical staff in attendance. Each session of treatment lasts around four hours. This chair has inbuilt TV, DVD etc as well as multiple positioning facilities. This procedure can be very unpleasant, use of the chair can help distract the child and ease their discomfort.
We continue to support the pharmacy booklet for Yorkhill.
Funds have been provided for part-time Dietitians to spend dedicated time with children with renal/urology problems in Ninewells Hospital Dundee, Fife Health Board and for a fourth year in the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh. These renal dieticians work with children suffering from renal failure, encouraging adequate intake of potassium, sodium, phosphorus and fluid as needed. Recognizing that every child is different it is the charity’s aim that children should be given individual attention, tailored to their particular needs. The charity regularly monitors the success of these dieticians and are committed to continuing to support these posts.
We are delighted to say that after three year’s funding the part-time dietician in Aberdeen has been taken on by the NHS.
Bladder Scanners have been provided for Fife, the Oban area, Motherwell/Lanarkshire area and for the Borders. These pieces of equipment enable children to be scanned locally without having to travel to Edinburgh or Yorkhill, Glasgow, making a huge difference to the day to day life of the families in these areas. The use of Bladder Scanners has also cut the need in many cases of children being catheterized. It is our aim that children should be treated in their home environment where possible.
Raigmore hospital in Inverness have been given funding for a second year for a consultant to attend quarterly clinics for children in the Highlands, once again ensuring the necessary resources are as local to the children as possible. Being able to have specialist care locally has made a huge difference to the families and the children.
Kidney Kids Scotland have funded this year a Designated Paediatric Continence Advisor in Dumfries for paediatric renal and urology patients and their families. This service should prove to be very valuable for the children in the area, prevention being better than cure.
A Scottish Paediatric Renal Urology Network (SPRUN) was set up in 2005 to help standardize local child renal care throughout Scotland. The charity has been working as a founder member of this Network and has provided further funding to help towards achieving this goal. One of the early very positive outcomes of the Network has been the establishment of “Family Groups”. These groups allow parents who had always felt isolated, to share their problems and experiences and this support group structure lets them know that they are not in this alone.
Funding has also been made available to allow nurses from all over the country to attend training seminars. These nurses have not only to obtain training in their own time, they also have to pay for the training. Kidney Kids Scotland believe this is essential for the welfare of the children and again promotes consistency of treatment and care across Scotland.
A percentage of the charity’s funds have again been disbursed to assist a large number of Scottish families who have been disadvantaged by their child’s renal illness. It is the charity’s view that no parent should have to worry about potential financial problems in addition to worrying about their sick child.
To this end, efforts have been made to ensure that every family who either has to travel a distance to Yorkhill, or has to take time off from their job to be with their child and who needs assistance, can do so without having to have the stress of wondering where the money is coming from.
Furthermore through our administration and contact many families have been directly supplied with essential equipment or assistance. This support is a very necessary and important part of the charity’s work and its benefits are very important to those who receive it.
