The stalemate between doctors and the Kenyatta National Hospital management surrounding the dismissal of 40 medics is far from over after the facility's leadership accused the doctors' union of being untruthful in its push for their reinstatement.
Through a letter dated Wednesday, August 25, the KNH management blames the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) for disrupting services at the hospital in order to push for an unrealistic agenda.
KMPDU had on Wednesday staged protests at the hospital premises demanding that the dismissed doctors are reinstated immediately over what the union termed as unprocedural sacking.
However, KNH now says in its letter that the doctors who were released from their jobs were all post graduate students who needed time to concentrate on their studies.
KNH Chief executive Officer, Evanson Kamuri, said that the dismissed medics had signed an agreement with the hospital's management over their ongoing post graduate studies.
He said that the studies are offered on a full time basis and that the hospital cannot engage them full time during that period.
“Notably, postgraduate training for doctors is very rigorous and offered on a full time basis. It is, therefore, unrealistic that the same postgraduate student can be on full time employment at the same time,” he stated.
“In such circumstances, the hospital and ultimately, the patient will be the loser. During my watch, KNH will not sacrifice the quality of care of patients at the expense of individual career progression.”
The CEO, however, said that the hospital had met all the other demands by the doctor's union.
KMPDU officials had accused the country's largest referral hospital of failing to obey a court order directing the reinstatement of the medics.
KMPDU Secretary General, Davji Atella, defended the Wednesday protests and called on the hospital management to reinstate the doctors immediately.
“The KNH management must obey the court orders. The doctors must be reinstated as the court had ordered,” Atella stated.
“We would like to notify the public that KMPDU intends to continue demonstrating until the court orders are obeyed.”
During the demonstrations, 15 doctors were arrested.
