Earlier on Sunday, January 3, 2021, Dr. Denis Nsame, Director of the Regional Hospital announced the temporal closure of the Haemodyalisis Centre of the Bamenda Regional Hospital.

He told the public and dialysis patients in particular that “due to unforeseen acute breakdown of the machines in the Dialysis Centre, the Hemodialysis Centre has been temporarily closed and patients transferred to other General and Regional Hospitals of the country pending a lasting solution to the machines of the center”.

While Dr. Nsame was expressing regrets at the inconveniences the situation may cause, Dr. Kinsgley Che Soh, North West Regional Delegate for Public Health came out to say that the hemodialysis center “has not been closed’.

He however confirmed the fact that the dialysis machines are nonfunctional and as such, patients cannot be attended to.

In what appears to be a confrontation between the two medical administrators, the regional delegate wrote, “The population of the North West Region is hereby informed that contrary to the Radio announcement issued by the Director of the Regional Hospital this morning, the Hemodialysis Centre of the Regional Hospital has not been closed”.

“Rather, the Hemodialysis machines which have been serving patients for more than eight years now are progressively being replaced by H.E. the Minister of Public Health, and the new machines shall go operational in the days ahead,” said Dr. Che Soh.

The Regional Delegate claims that the patients who have left Bamenda to seek dialysis elsewhere are doing so voluntarily. He urges others to remain patient.

His words: “While some patients have voluntarily moved to seek care in some other Hemodialysis Centers in the country during this short period, we are calling on all the others to exercise a bit of patience, as they shall be informed as soon as the new machines are installed.”

The shortage of hemodialysis kits is a recurring problem in Cameroonian hospitals. A few weeks ago, the hemodialysis centers of Bertoua and Maroua experienced a breakdown in their kits, causing patients to agonize.

Months back, kidney patients blocked a major road in Yaoundé following a breakdown of dialysis kits at the teaching hospital.

Reports say the government has long placed an order for 15,000 dialysis kits to curb the shortage. It has also denied claims that many people have died because of the breakdown in dialysis kits.