When retired Katikati orchardist Brian Thompson found out he had kidney disease four years ago, he knew nothing of the condition or what impact dialysis would have on daily life.

Discovering he had just 8% of normal kidney function left came as a shock as he had no obvious health issues. He and wife Jean were most grateful to have the Kidney Society’s community health educator Brian Murphy, walk the journey with them.

“When he first went on dialysis, we knew nothing,” Jean said. “You get given so much information all at once and it was Brian and the Kidney Society who kept us sane. They put on education training days in Tauranga where we could learn, ask questions and meet other people going through a similar thing.

“Brian would visit us at home and was gentle but quite honest about the realities of our situation.”

That valuable wraparound care and emotional support provided by the Kidney Society has just received a $20,000 funding boost from BayTrust to help cover the community health educator’s role in Bay of Plenty.

As a former renal nurse, Murphy has decades of experience in kidney disease and said the funding would help fill an important gap between medical providers and patients’ families.

He regularly undertakes home visits and sends emails, text messages, phone calls, visits dialysis units, liaises with medical staff and runs community education sessions for kidney patients.

“Every client’s values, goals and health issues are different. You want to be positive and give encouragement but also put a silver lining on the grey cloud that’s sitting over them. So it is quite a challenge. It’s just about providing resources and support, and letting them know they’re not alone.”

Brian Murphy, community health educator for the BOP. Supplied photo.

Murphy said getting money for not-for-profits could be a challenge.

“Kidney disease is a very low priority in a lot of people’s eyes. It’s not as high profile or as well supported as other diseases or conditions. We are always looking at our services to see how we can save money, so this grant from BayTrust will make a big difference to support our clients in this area.”

One in 10 New Zealanders is affected by kidney disease, with numbers continuing to rise every year. Diabetes and uncontrolled high blood pressure are two leading contributors, but nephritis (inflammation of the kidneys), inherited conditions, lupus, kidney stones and repeated kidney infections could also contribute to a loss of kidney function.

“Kidney disease can affect anyone, of any background, age or ethnicity,” Murphy said.

“Our clients normally get short of breath and have low energy levels. Because they’ve got low red blood cell counts, they often have low iron counts and are anaemic as well. Once the kidneys are not working, the whole body struggles.

“My job is to help people decipher the information they’ve been given. I tell them what questions they should be asking their medical team, because you don’t know what you don’t know. We walk beside them, giving direction on what to expect and what their expectations should be.”

BayTrust Community advisor Lotima Vaioleti said having to go on dialysis had life-changing consequences and the support the Kidney Society provided was essential.

“Last year 348 patients in the Bay of Plenty received one-on-one support from Brian so we are very pleased to provide this $20,000 grant to enable him to continue the important work he does throughout our region.”