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Posted: 1:00 AM CDT Saturday, Mar. 26, 2022

For the past 20 months Samar Zeid has settled into a familiar routine at St. Boniface Hospital.

For the past 20 months Samar Zeid has settled into a familiar routine at St. Boniface Hospital.

Three times a week – Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays – a family member, sometimes her husband, Munther, brings her to the Hospital.

She’ll head up to the fourth floor for hemodialysis. It’s a treatment which cleans the blood by removing waste and excess water. Blood passes through an artificial kidney machine that cleans it.

"I get to my chair and get comfortable," she said. "Different nurses and doctors come and go, and they’re keeping an eye on everything. They’re working to keep all of us happy."

Samar Zeid was first diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease in her 20s. She began experiencing significant kidney failure in her early 40s. This past year, she had both of her kidneys removed.

Now, at 47, she’s on Transplant Manitoba’s waiting list for a kidney transplant.

"Right now, this is what God wants me to have and that’s how it is. Without kidneys it’s hard. I’m limited in what I can drink and how much. I choose to be positive. Life will get easier with a transplant."

Samar Zeid is not alone.

As many as one in 10 Manitoba adults have some amount of kidney disease. Kidneys can lose 80 per cent of their function before any symptoms are felt. Manitoba has some of the highest rates of kidney disease across Canada (kidneyhealth.ca).

St. Boniface Hospital provides kidney health care to individuals with all stages of kidney disease and works in partnership with the province’s kidney health care provider, the Manitoba Renal Program. Resources at St. Boniface include the 22-station unit where Samar and other patients receive their four-hour hemodialysis treatments.

For the Zeids, the appointments add to an already busy schedule.

The Zeid family owns and operates five FOODFARE grocery stores in Winnipeg. Munther Zeid’s father, Wajih "Moe" Zeid, was central in growing the chain of stores after arriving in Winnipeg from Palestine in 1977. Moe is still involved with the family business, along with his sons and daughters, and numerous grandchildren.

For many of Samar’s dialysis appointments, hospital visitors were not allowed, due to pandemic restrictions in effect. Still, she opted to come to the Hospital rather than do peritoneal dialysis, a different treatment which can be done at home. The home treatment must be done daily and requires another person be in attendance.

"Our kids are older. They’re building their own lives. They have school and careers, and I don’t want them to have another commitment."

To pass the time at her appointments, she forgoes the television in favour of her phone.

"I talk to my three sisters back home in Ramallah (in Palestine)."

High on the list when her health allows?

"We want to travel and visit back home."

March is Kidney Health Month. Currently, there are more than 29,000 Canadians like Samar receiving dialysis treatments, according to The Kidney Foundation of Canada. It says currently, 3,400 Canadians are on the waiting list for a donor kidney and 1,700 kidney transplants are performed annually.

You can be a lifeline for hemodialysis patients like Samar. In fact, donating in support of the Hospital today will enhance patient care throughout: the Kidney Health Clinic, the Peritoneal Dialysis Clinic, the Hemodialysis Unit, and many other units. St. Boniface Kidney Health Program staff are also involved in groundbreaking medical research about kidney disease.

Consider becoming a monthly donor – your gift will ensure the Kidney Health Clinic is always ready to provide the best care possible.

Help write the next chapter.

This article is produced by the Advertising Department of the Winnipeg Free Press, in collaboration with St. Boniface Hospital Foundation