Kidney Patients Appeal for Support as High Cost of Specialized Foods Takes Toll

Kidney patients across Ghana are appealing for public and corporate support to help them cope with the crippling cost of the specialized, low-sodium and low-potassium diets that renal disease demands a burden that, patient advocates say, is proving just as punishing as the cost of dialysis itself.

A disease that is quietly overwhelming Ghana's health system

Chronic kidney disease has moved from a background health concern to one of Ghana's fastest-growing public health challenges. The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has warned that non-communicable diseases, including chronic kidney disease, now account for roughly 40 to 45 percent of deaths in the country, and that the condition is increasingly striking young people . Medical specialists estimate that about one in eight Ghanaian adults is likely to develop chronic kidney disease in their lifetime, often without symptoms until significant damage has already occurred.

Free dialysis has not erased the financial burden

Government has taken steps to ease the cost of treatment. Since December 2024, dialysis has been offered free of charge under the National Health Insurance Scheme, a policy meant to relieve patients who previously faced dialysis bills running close to GH¢2,000 a week. Yet patient advocates say the policy, while welcome, has not eliminated the financial strain of living with kidney disease. The Renal Patients Association has documented cases of desperate patients resorting to selling assets or offering property in exchange for a donor kidney, reflecting how deep the financial pressure runs even where dialysis itself is subsidized.

Part of the problem is that dialysis is only one line item in a much longer bill. Kidney patients must follow strict dietary regimens specialized, often imported, low-sodium and low-potassium foods and supplements to avoid complications between treatment sessions. These products are frequently more expensive than ordinary groceries and are rarely covered by insurance, leaving patients and their families to absorb the cost directly out of pocket.

Machines are scarce, and sessions are being cut short

The strain is compounded by a shortage of equipment at public dialysis centers. At Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, the only public dialysis centre in the Central Region, more than 100 patients depend on just five functioning machines, forcing each patient to be limited to roughly two hours per session instead of the recommended for a shortfall that patient groups warn exposes them to serious health risks. The Forum for Kidney Patients Association Ghana has publicly appealed to government, corporate organizations, and benevolent individuals to help expand dialysis capacity at the facility.

What patients are asking for
Renal patient groups say the appeal for support now goes beyond machines and medication to cover the everyday cost of staying alive on a kidney-friendly diet. Their asks typically include:

Subsidies or NHIS coverage extended to specialized renal foods and nutritional supplements, not just dialysis and transplant procedures.

Corporate and philanthropic sponsorship of patient welfare funds to offset the recurring cost of dietary management.

Expansion of dialysis machines and staffing at regional teaching hospitals to reduce overcrowding and shortened sessions.

Continued public awareness campaigns on early detection, since routine health checks, blood pressure and blood sugar control, and caution with painkillers and unregulated herbal medicines remain the most cost-effective way to prevent the disease altogether.

A call that goes beyond the hospital ward

For Ghana's renal patients, the message is consistent: free dialysis was a critical first step, but survival with chronic kidney disease depends on far more than the treatment session itself. Without support for the specialized foods that keep patients stable between sessions, advocates warn, many families will continue to face impossible choices between a proper diet and other basic needs even as government subsidies have already eased one part of their burden.

Mustapha Bature Sallama.
Medical/ Science Communicator,
Private Investigator, Criminal investigation and Intelligence Analysis.

International Conflict Management and Peace Building.USIP

[email protected]
+233-555-275-880
References
Ghana Business News, "Kidney disease is emerging major public health challenge in Ghana - Minister," March 17, 2026. https://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2026/03/17/kidney-disease-is-emerging-major-public-health-challenge-in-ghana-minister/

DrDoGood, "The Cost of Dialysis in Ghana." https://www.drdogood.health/blogs/the-rising-costs-of-dialysis-in-ghana-a-call-for-kidney-health-awareness

ModernGhana, "Kidney for sale: Some demand cash, others just a two-bedroom apartment President of Renal Patients reveals," November 12, 2024. https://www.modernghana.com/news/1356467/kidney-for-sale-some-demand-cash-others-just-a.html

ModernGhana, "Kidney patients call for more dialysis machines at Cape Coast Teaching Hospital to enhance renal care." https://www.modernghana.com/news/1518642/kidney-patients-call-for-more-dialysis-machines.amp