Forced to wait for hours to undergo dialysis, nearly 20 renal patients and their attendants staged a protest in front of the State-run Institute of Nephro-Urology on Monday.

A recurring technical problem in the institute’s Reverse Osmosis (RO) plant resulted in patients having a harrowing time for the last five days, with the situation turning worse on Monday. The water treatment system is a critical factor for dialysis. Any disruption in the plant can be a great risk for patients. The institute does not have a stand-by system in place.

M. Anand Kumar, who runs Omega Rehabilitation Trust for poor kidney patients, said the condition of most patients, whose last dialysis was on Friday, had deteriorated as they had heavy fluid accumulation. After a wait for more than four hours, the patients were taken in batches. However, most could undergo the procedure only for two hours instead of the usual four, so that more patients could be accommodated.

“My dialysis was supposed to start at 6 a.m. but I was taken in only around 11 a.m. I was breathless and tired,” said Anand H.G. (34), a patient who comes from Hessarghatta for dialysis thrice a week. Naveen (13), from K R Puram, had to wait from 4.30 a.m. to 12 p.m.

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