Recently the National Hospital Guido Valadares transferred six kidney disease patients to Indonesia for an operation so that after the operation they can go for blood transfusions in Timor. 
HNGV Acting Clinic Director Isodoro da Silva said the national hospital could do blood transfusions for patients who’ve had the operation, while those who haven’t had the operation needed to go to Indonesia first.
“Currently there are 17 people living here who permanently need blood transfusions and there are six we’ve recently sent overseas to Indonesia to do a Cimino/AV-SHUNT operation so they will be able to do blood transfusions,” said Dr da Silva in Bidau, Dili.
He said the blood transfusions would not cure the patients but would help to clear viruses living inside their bodies, as their kidneys do not work.
Dr da Silva said kidney disease could be caused by genetic factors or as a result of other diseases, like hypertension.
He said they were yet to send patients for kidney transplants abroad, as it was a long process, it cost a lot of money and it was difficult to find donors.
Meanwhile, National Director for Hospital Support Work and Transfers Horacio Sarmento da Costa said in 2013 they referred 125 patients to hospitals in Bali and Surabaya, including some kidney disease patients.
Apart from that, he said they referred patients ranging from children to the elderly for things like heart disease and cancer, as they were unable to do chemotherapy in Timor.
“There are now 12 patients based at the Sangla Hospital in Bali and at the Surabaya in Darmo and Sutomo there are about another 10 patients,” he said.
He said from the number transferred, 98% returned in a good condition while they failed to save the lives of the other 2%.
