Responses from the Devolved Governments

If the NKF campaign to increase home dialysis is to succeed government support is vital - health is a devolved responsibility so the NKF Chief Executive, Andrea Brown, wrote to all four administrations: the Department of Health and Social Care, the Directorate for Health Care Quality and Improvement for the Scottish Government, the Ministry for Health and Social Services for the Welsh Government and the Committee for Health for Northern Ireland, requesting an update on the steps that each organisation was taking to promote and improve the provision of home dialysis in their area.

All four administrations responded, and all reiterated their support for the campaign. The Department for Health and Social Care recognised the benefits of investment in Home Therapies and particularly referenced the establishment of the Renal Services Transformation Programme and eleven clinical networks as the delivery vehicles.

The Welsh Government confirmed their strong commitment to increasing rates of home dialysis, pointing out their higher rates than the UK average and a number of initiatives being rolled out. These include Pathways to Home strategic model, an all Wales Education Group, collaboration with kidney charities, kidney cafes for home dialysis and peer support.

The Scottish Directorate for Healthcare quality and Improvement confirmed their support for increasing home dialysis where it is clinically recommended. The Department of Health for Northern Ireland also confirmed their commitment to home dialysis and had agreed funding to facilitate renal access surgery, particularly for PD catheter insertion. They also pointed out that the province has the highest rate of pre-emptive kidney transplantation in the UK.

The text of all four responses can be found at the Appendix on page 49.