San Juan, PR – Did you know that every thirty minutes your body’s kidneys (each the size of a child’s fist) filter all the blood in your body –removing wastes, toxins, and excess fluid? They also help control blood pressure, stimulate the production of red blood cells, keep your bones healthy, and regulate blood chemicals that are essential to life.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, about 30 million US adults are estimated to have renal disease, and most are undiagnosed –kidney diseases being the ninth leading cause of death in the country. Diabetes and high blood pressure are the leading cause of kidney failure, representing about 3 out of 4 new cases in America alone.
This is why, as part of Abarca’s Better Care Community Program (BCCP), the Renal Council of Puerto Rico was chosen as one of four nonprofit organizations to benefit from grants and volunteer support to be received throughout the next year.
The Renal Council of Puerto Rico was established to reduce renal diseases on the island through promotion, protection, and prevention. The organization resorts to a comprehensive and multidisciplinary service system that starts with research, early detection through renal screening clinics, education, treatment, complementary medical services, quality control, and the development of public policy.
Abarcans will contribute to the update of an electronic platform that allows clinical laboratories throughout PR to report renal function data obtained from the Glomerular Filtration index, an important indicator to detect renal disease at early stages. A function to generate maps will also be added, to visualize received data by region and municipality for the benefit of epidemiology reports.
Preventing renal disease is possible by educating at risk populations, engaging in early intervention practices, and managing risk factors. Treating the disease to slow its progression and reduce the risk of complications due to chronic kidney disease is also possible, and the data collected is vital to help achieve this.
The Abarcan BCCP volunteer committee for this organization will be led by María Monserrate, and mentored by Juan C. Ruiz, Chief Technology Officer. The core team of Abarcans also includes: Josué Vélez, Orlando Santiago, Pardeep Kumar, Coral Cotto, and David Capó. The self-nominated squad will participate in leadership trainings as part of the organizational development program Abarcan Growth.
We hope that their story inspires and encourages you to support them in this noteworthy cause. What’s more, we look forward to witnessing the power of Abarcans at work, putting forth their time and effort to help find a better way and make healthcare awesome for everyone.
Learn more about the Renal Council of PR and their services and programs, as well as prevention and risk management of renal diseases.