The Health Ministry has made a €5 million investment in the replacement of heamodialysis machines within the Renal Unit at Mater Dei Hospital (MDH), Health Minister Chris Fearne said on Thursday. 

In Malta, there are around 220 patients who are treated with haemodialysis on a regular basis at MDH because they are living with kidney disease. 

The machines used for haemodialysis require around 200 litres of purified water in order to work properly, which is why the Renal Unit already has a Reverse Osmosis plant. 

However, as Fearne pointed out during his visit to the Renal Unit on Thursday, around 500 cycles of haemodialysis take place in MDH per week which means that an astounding amount of litres of water is required to keep these treatments going. 

Over the past months, the ministry has made an investment in portable water purifying machines so that they can be used across different halls where haemodialysis takes place; the Intensive Care unit and the Oncology Centre. 

Additionally, old haemodialysis machines have been replaced with more advanced version that take less of a toll on the patients, Fearne said.