As part of World Kidney Week, celebrated this year around the theme “Kidney health: taking care of everyone, while protecting the planet”, the Zanmi Lasante Medical Education Department organized a series of awareness-raising and screening activities in Saint-Marc and Hinche from March 7 to 12, 2026.
The aim of these activities was to inform the population about the importance of kidney health and to promote prevention as well as early detection of kidney disease.
Kidney disease represents a major public health issue. They can evolve for many years without apparent symptoms before reaching advanced stages. Prevention, control of blood pressure and diabetes, and early detection help to reduce complications and rapidly direct people to the appropriate care services.
In this context, Zanmi Lasante teams carried out several information and screening activities in the community. Awareness-raising sessions explained the role of the kidneys in the body, as well as the main risk factors that can lead to kidney damage, including high blood pressure, diabetes, certain heart diseases, self-medication or misuse of nephrotoxic drugs, as well as certain infections or systemic diseases that can affect both children and adults.
Activities also included radio interventions, education sessions in community spaces, distribution of educational leaflets and the use of visual aids to facilitate understanding of prevention messages.
Among these activities, an awareness and screening day was organized for young people and educators. The activity combined group information sessions with individual exchanges enabling risk factors specific to each participant to be addressed.
As part of the screening, several assessments were carried out, including weight and height measurements, blood pressure readings, body mass index calculations, blood sugar checks, identification of nephropathy risk factors, as well as urine strips.
According to initial data collected from the forms already compiled, 212 students, 13 teachers, one member of maintenance staff and one janitor have already benefited from this awareness-raising and screening activity. These figures remain partial, as all the collection forms have not yet been compiled.
Three patients presenting a need for immediate care have already been referred and have begun their medical follow-up at the family medicine unit of Saint-Nicolas Hospital in Saint-Marc. The other participants identified as requiring further assessment are currently being followed up by telephone to facilitate their referral to the appropriate health services.
A total of 28 healthcare professionals were involved in carrying out these activities. The team included two physician trainers, eight family medicine residents, four pediatric residents, six interns, two line nurses and six nurse trainees.
For Dr. Dieudonné Kenot, a second-year family medicine resident, the reception given to this initiative by the participants testifies to the interest shown in prevention and health education activities within the community.
“The beneficiaries welcomed this campaign with particular enthusiasm. We collected several positive testimonials from students as well as the school principal, who stressed the importance and relevance of this initiative for the school community,” he explained.
Many participants also expressed the wish that similar campaigns be organized more frequently in order to continue strengthening health education and disease prevention.
These activities carried out as part of World Kidney Week helped to inform the population about the risk factors for kidney disease, carry out basic screenings and refer those in need of care to the appropriate health services.
Supporting Zanmi Lasante’s programs makes it possible to strengthen these prevention activities and widen access to screening and care for communities in Haiti.