Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Providing clean water to remote villages: the dialyzer filtration system

David A. Goodkin, MD
Conditions
February 12, 2023
Share
Tweet
Share

Those of us who live in developed nations generally take for granted that we have ready access to clean water. Yet, the World Health Organization estimates that over two billion people worldwide must drink unsafe water. This problem is often greatest in remote areas of developing countries. Ingestion of water from rivers, wells, and other sources that feces have contaminated induces diarrheal diseases usually caused by bacteria or viruses. Most small rural villages cannot afford to purchase imported clean water, lack electricity, and cannot install systems such as reverse osmosis machines.

Remarkably, it has now been shown that hollow fiber polysulfone hemodialyzers widely utilized in developed countries to remove toxins from the blood of patients with kidney failure (which are routinely discarded after use) can be sterilized and repurposed to purify water. A simple, readily affordable system can provide ongoing relief to an entire village.

In 2014, nephrologist Nathan Levin and his wife Linda Donald observed that an Israeli company was using an industrial device containing hundreds of dialysis filters to clean sewage water. They collaborated with NUFiltration Ltd to devise a much smaller version to purify source water in remote villages. The new apparatus incorporates only eight 10-inch dialyzer filters and does not require electricity. Contaminated water is stored in a large (1,000 to 4,500 liter) tank that is suspended 3 meters above the ground. The tank is filled using a hand- or gasoline-powered pump. Gravity can then propel the water through the filters (which have pores of only 3 nanometers) on demand, yielding filtrate water free of bacteria, viruses, and parasites at the faucet. The system can provide up to 500 liters per hour. It costs only $3,100 to procure and install the system (tank, pump, tubing, and filtration device), and the average maintenance cost is as low as 60 cents a day with long-term use.

Drinking contaminated water in remote villages results in recurrent episodes of diarrhea that cause loss of school or work days and may be complicated by dehydration, malnutrition, acute kidney injury, and even death. Young children are particularly vulnerable. Women are often called upon to walk long distances to retrieve water, losing educational and occupational opportunities. And mothers typically stay home to care for sick children. Dr. Levin and Ms. Donald established the non-profit organization Easy Water for Everyone (EWfE) to provide, install, and repair the novel filtration systems to alleviate such suffering and sacrifice, at no cost to the villagers. (I formerly served on the Board of Directors of EWfE.)  The system has been proven to reduce diarrheal episodes by 73 percent, as published in the peer-reviewed journal Scientific Reports Nature Research. To date, the units have been implemented in 32 remote villages in Ghana, Senegal, and Uganda, serving more than 18,000 people in aggregate. The approach has proven quite sustainable; the first village has now employed its system for seven years. Occasionally the hemodialyzers need to be replaced. But trained villagers are vigilant in their regular flushing of the system, and the original set of filters may last for years. No village has switched to an alternative source of clean water.

Dialyzer filtration requires no disinfectants. Hence, there is no issue with the unpalatability of the drinking water, as may occur with the practice of water halogenation with agents like chlorine. It is unnecessary to monitor disinfectant levels.

The remote villages served by EWfE lack plumbing and toilets. Over 90 percent of the households practice open defecation. Digging deep wells to provide water is often prohibitively expensive, and even these sources are vulnerable to contamination, particularly during flood seasons. EWfE is in the process of initiating handwashing stations in the villages that it serves, and it is expected that improved sanitation and hygiene practices will further reduce the incidence of diarrhea.

The challenge of attaining clean water persists for vast numbers of people living in rural areas without electricity. Remarkably, the simple hollow-fiber hemodialyzer (“artificial kidney”) typically discarded after use can be repurposed to provide a highly effective, low-cost remedy to this problem. It is hoped that with greater financial support to enable the wide application of the system, many more lives can be improved by this innovation.

David A. Goodkin is a nephrologist.

Prev

Opioid addiction: Understanding the risk factors with a predictive model [PODCAST]

February 11, 2023 Kevin 0
…
Next

Why Black women are dying during pregnancy and what we can do about it

February 12, 2023 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Nephrology

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Opioid addiction: Understanding the risk factors with a predictive model [PODCAST]
Next Post >
Why Black women are dying during pregnancy and what we can do about it

ADVERTISEMENT

More by David A. Goodkin, MD

  • Nothing is sacred: Changing CPR algorithms can be a rude awakening

    David A. Goodkin, MD
  • Cardiac callus

    David A. Goodkin, MD
  • Doctors with borders

    David A. Goodkin, MD

Related Posts

  • Don’t throw the E&M baby out with the bath water: the proposed CMS changes

    Ronald Hirsch, MD

More in Conditions

  • Medicaid lags behind on Alzheimer’s blood test coverage

    Amanda Matter
  • Why transgender health care needs urgent reform and inclusive practices

    Angela Rodriguez, MD
  • Why the Sean Combs trial is a wake-up call for HIV prevention

    Catherine Diamond, MD
  • New surge in misleading ads about diabetes on social media poses a serious health risk

    Laura Syron
  • mRNA post vaccination syndrome: Is it real?

    Harry Oken, MD
  • The critical role of nurse practitioners in colorectal cancer screening

    Elisabeth Evans, FNP
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • New student loan caps could shut low-income students out of medicine

      Tom Phan, MD | Physician
    • How federal actions threaten vaccine policy and trust

      American College of Physicians | Conditions
    • What street medicine taught me about healing

      Alina Kang | Education
    • Are we repeating the statin playbook with lipoprotein(a)?

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • Why transgender health care needs urgent reform and inclusive practices

      Angela Rodriguez, MD | Conditions
    • mRNA post vaccination syndrome: Is it real?

      Harry Oken, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • COVID-19 was real: a doctor’s frontline account

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Conditions
    • Why primary care doctors are drowning in debt despite saving lives

      John Wei, MD | Physician
    • New student loan caps could shut low-income students out of medicine

      Tom Phan, MD | Physician
    • Confessions of a lipidologist in recovery: the infection we’ve ignored for 40 years

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • A physician employment agreement term that often tricks physicians

      Dennis Hursh, Esq | Finance
    • Why taxing remittances harms families and global health care

      Dalia Saha, MD | Finance
  • Recent Posts

    • An addiction physician’s warning about America’s next public health crisis [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Gen Z’s DIY approach to health care

      Amanda Heidemann, MD | Education
    • What street medicine taught me about healing

      Alina Kang | Education
    • Smart asset protection strategies every doctor needs

      Paul Morton, CFP | Finance
    • The silent cost of choosing personalization over privacy in health care

      Dr. Giriraj Tosh Purohit | Tech
    • How IMGs can find purpose in clinical research [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 1 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • New student loan caps could shut low-income students out of medicine

      Tom Phan, MD | Physician
    • How federal actions threaten vaccine policy and trust

      American College of Physicians | Conditions
    • What street medicine taught me about healing

      Alina Kang | Education
    • Are we repeating the statin playbook with lipoprotein(a)?

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • Why transgender health care needs urgent reform and inclusive practices

      Angela Rodriguez, MD | Conditions
    • mRNA post vaccination syndrome: Is it real?

      Harry Oken, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • COVID-19 was real: a doctor’s frontline account

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Conditions
    • Why primary care doctors are drowning in debt despite saving lives

      John Wei, MD | Physician
    • New student loan caps could shut low-income students out of medicine

      Tom Phan, MD | Physician
    • Confessions of a lipidologist in recovery: the infection we’ve ignored for 40 years

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • A physician employment agreement term that often tricks physicians

      Dennis Hursh, Esq | Finance
    • Why taxing remittances harms families and global health care

      Dalia Saha, MD | Finance
  • Recent Posts

    • An addiction physician’s warning about America’s next public health crisis [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Gen Z’s DIY approach to health care

      Amanda Heidemann, MD | Education
    • What street medicine taught me about healing

      Alina Kang | Education
    • Smart asset protection strategies every doctor needs

      Paul Morton, CFP | Finance
    • The silent cost of choosing personalization over privacy in health care

      Dr. Giriraj Tosh Purohit | Tech
    • How IMGs can find purpose in clinical research [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Providing clean water to remote villages: the dialyzer filtration system
1 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...