It’s Kidney Health Month with this year’s theme of Living Well with Kidney Disease!

With 1 in 10 British Columbians living with kidney disease and many not knowing it, Kidney Health Month plays an important role in raising awareness, sharing resources and inspiring health and wellness.

The WorldKidneyDay.org 2021 position paper emphasizes that, “There is an increasing recognition of the need to identify and address patient priorities, values and goals in order to advance research, practice and policy which improve the quality of life of people with CKD. Regardless of the type of kidney disease or treatment stage, patients want to be able to live well, maintain their role and social functioning, protect some semblance of normality, and have a sense of control over their health and wellbeing.”

On Thu. March 11, and all year long, WorldKidneyDay.org is raising awareness about the importance of kidney health and living well with kidney disease. See WorldKidneyDay.org for all their information and events.

www.worldkidneyday.org

To support living well, BC Renal is highlighting the many resources we and our partner organizations have for health professionals and people living with kidney disease.

For patients and caregivers, the Managing My Care section of the BC Renal website offers information and tools on many important topics. 

For care teams, the Health Professionals section provides related clinical resources for Palliative Care, Self-Management, Social Work Support, Symptom Assessment and Management, Transitions in Kidney Care and more. Also, check out and register for our upcoming Province Wide Rounds, with four online sessions scheduled for March, including the Mar. 19 Enhancing Patient Self-Management with Motivational Interviewing and Brief Action Planning in Kidney Care, presented by Connie Davis.

The WorldKidneyDay.org 2021 scientific editorial emphasizes that, “Empowering patients and their care partners, including family members and friends involved in their care, may help minimize the burden and consequences of CKD-related symptoms to enable increased life participation.” With this in mind, BC Renal is working to encourage and support a patient/care team partnership whenever possible.

Patient Forum 2021: Living Your Best Life with Kidney Disease

The Kidney Foundation of Canada is hosting an online educational forum Living Your Best Life with Kidney Disease from Tues. Mar. 9 through Thu. Mar. 11. The program has been developed in partnership with people living with kidney disease and it will bring together patients, care partners, healthcare professionals and researchers all over Canada who will share information to help you live your best life with kidney disease. Learn more and register here.

Living Well with Chronic Kidney Disease(CKD)

The Can-SOLVE CKD Network has recently launched a new, engaging website for people living with kidney disease to help with actively managing health, well-being and disease progression. The site covers Food & Diet, Medications, Symptoms, Mental & Physical Well-Being, Finances, Work & Education, and Travel! Check it out at https://mykidneysmyhealth.com/.

 

Public Awareness Campaigns Promoting Kidney Health & Early Detection of Kidney Disease

Could You Lose 80% is our successful campaign connected to KidneyHealthCheck.ca that we’re running for the third year in partnership with The Kidney Foundation – BC & Yukon Branch. The campaign mixes humour and serious messaging with two main objectives:

  • Increase kidney health awareness in BC - kidney disease affects 1 in 10 and you can lose up to 80% of kidney function without noticing symptoms.
  • Direct people to complete our short, online Kidney Health Self-Assessment (available in English, Chinese and Punjabi) to learn more about kidney health, their risk for kidney disease and whether they should visit a family doctor.

Keep your eye out for ads with Indigenous, Chinese and Punjabi media as well as ads wrapped around Lower Mainland buses and on Facebook and Instagram!

8 Golden Rules is a WorldKidneyDay.org campaign that promotes the following kidney health and kidney disease prevention/early detection activities, using bright, friendly graphics:

  1. Keep fit, be active
  2. Eat a healthy diet
  3. Check and control your blood sugar
  4. Check and control your blood pressure
  5. Take appropriate fluid intake
  6. Don’t smoke
  7. Don’t take over-the-counter anti-inflammatory/pain-killer pills regularly
  8. Get your kidney function checked if you have any “high risk” factors

 

We will be promoting the 8 Golden Rules on Facebook and Twitter throughout March.

Get Involved in Any or All of Our Campaigns

  • Do you have Kidney Health Month or World Kidney Day photos or initiatives from around BC to share? Email bcrenal@bcrenal.ca or send us a message on Facebook or Twitter.

  • Forward this newsletter to anyone you think could benefit. Include an introductory note such as, “In case you don’t already receive this, I wanted to share BC Renal’s Kidney Health Month newsletter that helps raise awareness about living well with kidney disease, kidney health and kidney disease prevention.”

  • Share our online Kidney Health Self-Assessment with family and friends and check your kidney health too! It takes under two minutes and during the month of March, participants can enter to win an Apple Watch!

  • Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for more information throughout Kidney Health Month, and amplify our posts by Liking, Sharing and Commenting. Use hashtags #BCRenalNetwork #KidneyHealthMonth #WorldKidneyDay

  • If you have the ability to have a virtual background for your Zoom or other video calls, download the World Kidney Day/Living Well with Kidney Disease background here.

Wishing everyone a healthy and inspired Kidney Health Month!