Journalists were on Friday, March 6 locked in a faceoff with officers from the National Youth Service at the Mbagathi District Hospital.
A scene ensued outside the facility after the reporters were denied entry into the facility, to cover the launch of the Coronavirus Isolation and treatment facility at the hospital.
The centre was launched by Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe who was in the company of Government Spokesperson Colonel Cyrus Oguna, and Foreign Affairs CS Raychelle Omamo along with medical practitioners from the Mbagathi and Kenyatta National Hospital.
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The reporters were only allowed to cover the launch after a senior official at the medical facility acting on a directive from CS Kagwe intervened, to let the journalists into the facility.
In the video seen by Kenyans.co.ke distraught journalist were asking why they had been locked out of the facility yet they had received invites.
"Journalists had been invited to the event, but they were blocked by the NYS who were alleging that the had been directed to let anyone in,
"They stated that we (reporters) would dirtify the facility," a source present at the scene told Kenyans.co.ke.
After they were successfully let into the faciltity, and offered exclusive coverage of the premises, with members of the public now having a clear picture of inside the centre.
The facility boasts a wing with 120 beds, and the medical practitioners have their names inscribed on the gears for easy identification.
Inside the wards, the beds are well spaced to allow for proper air circulation and minimise further spread of the virus.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke Colonel Oguna informed that the facility would have staff from both the Kenyatta National Hospital and the Mbagathi Hospital.
"The facility is part of Mbagathi but the medics will come from KNH as well, because they are all government facilities, and it could not be launched without ensuring there are adequate personnel," Oguna stated.
Medical practitioners at the facility have been afforded adequate equipment to aid in combating the deadly microbe.
With an airborne mode of transmission and through contact as well, the practitioners will be armed with facemasks and gear covering nearly every inch of their bodies to avoid contracting the disease.
Kagwe stated that the facility had sufficient material to help in curbing the virus. He argued that over-stocking would result in breaching inventory regulations, adding that the government hopes the situation cools down.
"We have enough to handle the situation because we are also hoping the situation will cool down," CS Kagwe stated.
