A rider's death in the Coastal region has further exposed inefficiencies in Kenya's health system a few days after an incident at Pumwani Maternity Hospital infuriated Kenyans.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, Mombasa-based activist Al Mahad Noor narrated how he was he was heartbroken by seeing his brother die in his arms.
This was after he spent the whole night, Tuesday, September 23, seeking help for his brother at three hospitals at the Coast.
The rider was involved in a head-on-collision accident with another boda boda rider and was referred to King Fahad Hospital in Mpeketoni.
Noor was summoned by the medics at the facility and arrived at around 7:30 p.m. to check on his brother. The situation worsened and the doctors reportedly asked him to rush his brother to Mombasa County.
"I was asked to take him to Mombasa yet they were were not providing any ambulances. I reached out for help through my social media pages and asked for emergency contacts. Kenyans responded and I called several numbers.
"My brother was struggling to breathe at that time and at Mpeketoni, there were no ventilators. Lamu East MP Shariff Athman sent his own ambulance after he spoke to me through a phone call," Noor recalls.
He added that his brother was rushed to another government hospital in Witu, Lamu at around 9 p.m. The doctors, however, lamented that he needed an operation as he was bleeding internally. The hospital lacked an Intensive Care Unit and the brother was to be rushed to Mombasa County.
Noor stated that the MP once again accorded them help and offered a speed boat to rush him to Mokowe Health Facility in Lamu. However, he was pronounced dead on arrival.
"Siku yake io keshafika. Alikua ashakata roho. Alikua ashableed uyo kwa kichwa. Hayo maswala ya hospitali lakini pia yalichangia. "His time to die had come. Yes, he bled to death but the situations of our hospitals worsened his condition too," Noor lamented.
On Friday, September 18, a woman gave birth outside Pumwani Maternity Hospital in Nairobi after guards denied her access to the facility. A section of political leaders demanded an inquest into the case.
The Nairobi Metropolitan Services took action and fired the guards and appointed police officers to coordinate services at the gates.
On Thursday, September 10, President Uhuru Kenyatta appealed to governors to form partnerships with referral hospitals to bridge the healthcare gap in the counties. He said a mentorship programme would help county hospitals upgrade critical health services.
