World Kidney Day 2026: Promote Organ Donation and Sustainable Kidney Care
By:- Dr. K. Anantha Rao, Consultant Nephrologist & Transplant Physician, KIMS Hospitals, Kurnool
World Kidney Day is observed every year to raise awareness about kidney health and the prevention of kidney disease. The theme for World Kidney Day 2026 is “Caring for People, Protecting the Planet.” This theme highlights the importance of patient-centred kidney care while also promoting environmentally sustainable healthcare practices.
In India, nearly 12 crore people are estimated to have chronic kidney disease (CKD). Among them, about 2 lakh patients progress to end-stage kidney disease (ESRD) every year, requiring either dialysis or kidney transplantation to survive. Unfortunately, only about 30% of these patients receive treatment. The remaining patients either lack access to treatment facilities or face financial constraints. As a result, nearly 1.5 lakh patients die every year from kidney disease, many of which are preventable with early detection and timely treatment.
The theme of this year also emphasizes the need for sustainable kidney care. Dialysis is a life-saving treatment but consumes significant natural resources, including large amounts of water, electricity, plastic consumables, and generates biomedical waste. These factors contribute to the environmental footprint of healthcare. Adopting environmentally responsible practices in kidney care is essential to ensure that treatment remains sustainable for future generations.
Among the available treatments for kidney failure, kidney transplantation is more environmentally sustainable compared to long-term dialysis, as it significantly reduces the consumption of water, electricity, and medical disposables. Therefore, organ donation should be actively promoted at the community level.
In Andhra Pradesh, the state government runs the Jeevandan Deceased Donor Transplant Program, which has significantly improved access to organ transplantation. Citizens are encouraged to register themselves as organ donors through the official website jeevandan.ap.gov.in. Even living kidney donation is considered safe, as donors undergo extensive medical evaluation and only healthy individuals are accepted for donation. In modern transplant medicine, blood group incompatibility is no longer an absolute barrier, as successful ABO-incompatible kidney transplants are now possible.
Dialysis treatment also has a significant environmental impact. Each dialysis session requires around 120 litres of purified reverse osmosis (RO) water, which in turn requires nearly 240 litres of raw water. The 120 litres of reject water generated during purification can be reused for purposes such as cleaning floors, gardening, and flushing toilets, thereby conserving water resources.
Dialysis consumables such as dialysers, blood tubing sets, and other disposable materials contribute nearly 300 kilograms of biomedical waste per patient per year. Reducing the environmental burden requires innovations such as lightweight, smaller, and more efficient dialysers, biodegradable packaging materials, and improved recycling practices.
The reuse of dialysers, when done under strict safety protocols, can also reduce biomedical waste compared to single-use dialysers. Additionally, dialysis manufacturers are working towards reducing the carbon footprint of dialyser production by minimizing polymer use and increasing recyclable plastic components. The use of solar panels in dialysis units can further help reduce the carbon footprint of dialysis services.
The concept of “green dialysis” is gaining importance worldwide. This includes the use of efficient dialysis machines that consume less water, optimized dialysis schedules to reduce energy consumption, shorter and more efficient dialysis treatments, and improved supply chain management to minimize packaging waste.
Perhaps the most effective way to protect the environment is preventing kidney disease itself. By controlling diabetes and hypertension, promoting healthy lifestyles, conducting community screening programs, and implementing measures to slow the progression of kidney disease, the demand for dialysis can be reduced, thereby lowering the environmental burden.
Early detection of CKD can be achieved even at the village level by screening individuals at Primary Health Centres (PHCs) using simple and affordable tests such as blood pressure measurement, urine examination, and serum creatinine testing. Screening is particularly important for people above 40 years of age, patients with diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and those with a family history of kidney disease.
Healthcare workers should be trained to identify early kidney disease, initiate treatment, and refer patients to appropriate centers for dialysis or transplantation when necessary. While planning treatment, patient priorities and quality of life must always be considered.
Community awareness about the causes, prevention, and early detection of kidney disease is crucial to reducing the burden of CKD in society.
At KIMS Hospital, Kurnool, efforts are actively being made to contribute to both patient care and environmental sustainability. The hospital regularly conducts community screening camps for early detection of kidney disease, works to slow the progression of CKD, and runs an active kidney transplant program that helps reduce the long-term environmental burden of dialysis.
So far, more than 80 kidney transplants have been successfully performed at KIMS Kurnool, making it the only hospital in the Rayalaseema region with a successful kidney transplant program.
On this World Kidney Day, let us pledge to protect kidney health through early detection, promote organ donation, and adopt sustainable healthcare practices — caring for people while protecting our planet.
