Kidney patients ‘scared to seek treatment’ due to Covid and antiviral shortages

Kidney disease patients have reported concerns that their dialysis treatment puts them at risk of severe illness due to a lack of Covid protection measures in hospitals and issues with accessing antiviral medication.
People with kidney disease are particularly vulnerable to Covid-19 and those on dialysis are at higher risk of hospitalisation and intensive care admission if they catch respiratory infections such as coronavirus or flu.
Patients at risk of serious Covid illness are offered antiviral treatments to help manage their symptoms but i understands patients have reported being unable to access them within five days of symptoms starting, as is required.
Kidney Care UK said some people are struggling to access antivirals quickly enough for them to be effective, and is calling for NHS staff to understand and better communicate how patients can obtain them in hospital if they need.
It has warned patients against becoming complacent about respiratory infections as the winter illness season progresses.
Nicolas Chavez’s mother Miryam, 65, who has kidney disease and dementia, caught Covid for the first time in October after she went into hospital for dialysis treatment.
He claimed he made repeated requests for her to receive dialysis in a side room, away from the main ward at Salford Royal hospital, which were denied.
“They told me that clinically she doesn’t need a side room. I don’t know why because she suffers from dementia and she has a lot of health problems,” he said.
“For the first year, she was always in a side room, and then she was suddenly changed to the shared ward without any real explanation.”
Patients, visitors and staff are no longer required to wear face masks in the majority of clinical areas within hospitals. Some hospitals may request mask-wearing in areas where particularly vulnerable patients are treated.
Mr Chavez, 28, from Walkden in Suffolk, accompanies his mother to her dialysis appointments three times a week. He said that “nobody really wears masks” during her appointments and he said he had observed patients on the ward coughing before his mother tested positive for Covid.
“Since the start of October I noticed that more people in the unit were having [Covid] symptoms so it got scarier, and in mid-October she got Covid for the very first time, which I’m pretty sure she got in the dialysis ward,” Mr Chavez said.
He later tested positive, as did his aunt, who also lives with them. He informed the hospital who placed his mother in a side room for subsequent visits to keep her away from other patients while she remained Covid positive, he said.
Aware his mother was eligible for Covid antivirals, Mr Chavez also claimed that he made several attempts to get the hospital to prescribe the medication but said he was unable to obtain them within the required window because of a “communication issue” between staff at the hospital.
The experience has left him worried about his mother’s risk of falling ill from future hospital visits.
“It is frightening that she also continues to be in the shared ward, being very vulnerable,” he said.
The Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Salford Royal Hospital, did not respond to i‘s request for comment.
Covid cases and hospitalisations have fallen according to the most recent UK Health Security Agency reporting. But influenza cases and hospitalisations have increased.
Fiona Loud, policy director at Kidney Care UK, said: “People who have Covid-19 should be isolated during dialysis sessions and local infection control policies should be followed to reduce the risk of other patients from being unnecessarily exposed.
“It’s really important that we do not become complacent about respiratory infections like Covid-19 and flu, and that everyone at risk can access treatment promptly.”
Lara Wong, founder of campaign group Clinically Vulnerable Families, said accessing antivirals remains a significant challenge for eligible patients.
“Many severely immunosuppressed patients are unaware that they qualify for these treatments, and there is often a lack of urgency among healthcare professionals to ensure timely access.”
She added: “Miryam’s experiences are, sadly, not unique and highlight systemic issues with hospital protocols, communication, and, importantly, the lack of airborne infection control measures. It is essential to address these shortcomings, which have been identified repeatedly during the UK Covid-19 Inquiry.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We do not underestimate how challenging winter will be again this year for the NHS, with viruses including Covid-19 and flu continuing to threaten patients and our health system.”
They added that the Government is working with staff to make sure the NHS is prepared for rising winter illnesses and working to improve Covid vaccine uptake.