Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha on Wednesday directed all protesting intern doctors to report to work pending the resolution of the grandstanding with the government.
The CS disclosed the decision followed a meeting held last weekend between the government and the representatives of doctors.
According to Nakhumicha, the meeting deliberated on several issues including the posting of all doctor interns at a stipend rate of Ksh70,000 per month.
The CS stated the Ministry would post at least 552 interns immediately, followed by the rest depending on the availability of resources to be availed in due course.
Nakhumicha attributed the delays in posting of interns to a strenuous budget that has been greatly impacted by the bulging number of medical graduates.
"The realities of the fiscal space coupled with the withdrawal of the Finance Bill 2024 cannot permit this," Nakhumicha claimed.
"This is also due to the budget ceiling. The Ministry received an allocation of KES 3.7 billion in the Financial Year 2024/2025 for the internship," she added.
Nakhumicha also noted she was waiting for the court's direction in a petition previously filed against the ministry challenging paying intern doctors Ksh70,000 as a stipend.
"The court case notwithstanding, the parties agreed to continue pursuing a consensus position within 60 days that ended on Sunday, July 7, 2024," the CS revealed.
"So far numerous meetings have been held with good progress made towards achieving consensus," Nakhumicha added.
The announcement by the Cabinet Secretary comes hours after a group of intern doctors held an overnight vigil outside Nakhumicha's office as they demanded immediate posting.
The protests which began on Monday saw the intern doctors camp outside Afya House holding a vigil while some doctors slept outside the Ministry headquarters.
