World’s first low cost Dialysis unveiled

09 March, Chennai

It’s an invention that could save millions of lives each year and transform the way advanced kidney disease is treated around the world.

After a year-long global quest, the world’s first low cost dialysis system has been unveiled on World Kidney Day today. The inventor of the innovative design has been awarded the Affordable Dialysis Prize and taken home US$100,000.

The prize was jointly established by The George Institute for Global Health, the International Society of Nephrology and the Asian Pacific Society of Nephrology and supported by the Farrell Family Foundation.

The Affordable Dialysis Prize encouraged inventors around the world to develop an innovative dialysis system which works just as well as a conventional approach, but runs off solar power, can purify water from any source, has low running costs and can be sold for less than a thousand Dollars.

The winning design by engineer Vincent Garvey is so compact it can fit into a small suitcase, and uses a standard solar panel to power a highly efficient, miniature distiller capable of producing pure water from any source.

The judging panel made of ten global kidney specialists, was unanimous in its decision. Vincent Garvey, a manufacturing engineer from the United Kingdom’s Isle of Man, had little knowledge of dialysis or kidney disease when he entered the competition, but was inspired by the challenge and the chance to save lives.