FOR years, a diagnosis of kidney failure in rural Guyana carried a heavy burden involving three sessions a week, each costing thousands of dollars at a private centre, plus the long journey to reach one.
Families stretched their savings and rallied their communities just to keep loved ones alive. That reality is now changing. With dialysis available at the regional hospitals in Lima Sands, Number 75, Bath and Diamond, and De Kinderen and Enmore set to follow within two weeks, life-saving kidney care is finally coming home to the people who need it most.
This is a milestone worth celebrating. As of December 2025, some 655 Guyanese were on dialysis, and earlier this year patients at a private centre in Parika were paying $15,000 per session, or $45,000 a week.
The government’s $600,000 annual grant to dialysis patients was an important first step in easing that burden. Bringing the service into public regional hospitals takes that commitment much further, cutting travel time, reducing costs and giving patients the chance to receive treatment close to their families.
The expansion builds on an already impressive record. Since their commissioning, the six regional hospitals have recorded more than 145,000 outpatient visits, 18,500 admissions, over one million laboratory tests, 82,200 X-rays, 37,700 ultrasounds and 13,600 CT scans.
They have provided more than 101,000 specialist clinic attendances and welcomed roughly 2,400 newborns into the world. Average waiting times of about ten minutes for emergency care and 30 minutes for outpatient services would be the envy of far wealthier health systems.
Each facility is pulling its weight. Diamond leads in inpatient care with 4,705 admissions and 967 surgeries. Enmore tops outpatient activity with 36,670 visits and 21,131 X-rays. Number 75 and Lima have together completed more than 640,000 laboratory tests, while De Kinderen and Bath continue to deliver thousands of ultrasounds, consultations and diagnostic services.
These hospitals are not showpieces; they are busy, productive centres of care, easing pressure on the Georgetown Public Hospital and bringing specialist services to communities that once had to travel for them.
The momentum shows no sign of slowing. The government is procuring 15 additional dialysis machines to broaden access even further, while its continued investment in screening and chronic disease management will help more Guyanese protect their kidney health before dialysis becomes necessary. Treatment and prevention are advancing side by side.
The hinterland, too, is firmly in view. The Moruca, Kato and Lethem hospitals are each roughly half complete, construction of the West Demerara Hospital is well under way, and the design for the Bartica Regional Hospital is 95 per cent finished. Soon, residents of Regions One, Seven, Eight and Nine will enjoy the same modern standard of care now transforming the coast, a powerful statement that no Guyanese is too far away to matter.
A nation’s progress is best measured by how it cares for its most vulnerable citizens. A farmer in Bath or a fisherman in Lima no longer has to choose between distance and survival.
That is what development looks like in practice: modern hospitals, shorter waits and life-saving treatment within reach. Guyana is building a health system worthy of its people, and dialysis coming home is among its finest achievements yet.