Chirang district hospital opens region's first dialysis unit

Chirang district hospital has opened the region's first dialysis unit this week. Until now, kidney patients from the district had to travel to Guwahati or other distant hospitals two or three times a week for dialysis — a punishing routine in both time and cost.

The new unit begins with four dialysis machines, capable of treating around twelve patients a day. "This has been a long-standing need for us. Patients can now be treated close to home," the hospital superintendent said.

Three patients received dialysis at the unit on its opening day. "Earlier I had to leave home before dawn every time to reach Guwahati — the fare and the time both added up. Now I can be back home within hours," one patient said.

The health department says it plans to add two more machines to the unit in the coming months, and a team of trained technicians has already been hired.

A district medical officer said the facility would benefit not just Chirang but patients from neighbouring Kokrajhar and Baksa districts as well. "Our goal is to gradually turn this into a full kidney-care centre for the region," the officer said.