A fundraising effort to make life more comfortable for dialysis patients has found a little champion in bighearted Amelia Riordan.
Despite having never been able to save more than $10 in her life, the selfless 9-year-old has managed to raise just over $500 towards new TVs, DVD players and headsets forpatients at the Tauranga renal unit. With 28 patients on its books, the hospital-based unit is operating at full capacity, providing dialysis for patients three times a week for four to six hours at a time.
Dialysis is a substitute for functions performed by the kidneys, which filter waste products from the blood.
Because of a lack of available organs for transplant, most patients at the Tauranga unit face having to undergo treatment for the rest of their lives.
Amelia was inspired to start her one-person campaign after seeing how renal failure had affected her grandfather, Pat Riordan, and her neighbour, both of whom require dialysis.
With support from Uncle Black Beetles Tea and Craft in Brookfield, Amelia has been busy making more than 100 bookmarks from wire and decorative beads, and selling them at school and sports games. "It's pretty hard for a 9-year-old to stay motivated but Amelia's just been totally focused on this," mum Helen Riordan said. "She knows that to have dialysis you have to be very sick, and seeing patients has had quite an effect on her."
Her proud granddad, who accompanied her on a visit yesterday to hand over $300 to the unit, described Amelia's efforts as "just outstanding".
Asked what she thought about her fundraising quest, a bashful Amelia said it "felt good" to help and she wouldn't be stopping any time soon. "I'll probably get a lot more."
Growing demand for dialysis in the Bay of Plenty has pushed ahead plans for a six-station renal unit at Whakatane Hospital, scheduled to open in early 2011.
Bay of Plenty District Health Board chief executive Phil Cammish said initial designs for the new unit had already been drawn up. A renal nurse co-ordinator, at present training in Waikato, has been appointed and will be responsible for in-centre dialysis delivery in Tauranga and Whakatane.
If you want to order one of Amelia's bookmarks email helenandpaul@clear.net.nz
To donate directly email communications@bopdhb.govt.nz
