Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha on Friday, July 28, defended the controversial policy seeking to regulate the migration of Kenyan medical practitioners.
Appearing before the Senate Standing Committee on Health, the CS asserted that the government is actually looking to facilitate the migration rather than hinder it by implementing a policy that ensures proper and coordinated migration.
Even so, the Cabinet Secretary was grilled over the manner in which the government had implemented the policy especially after senators drew comparisons between the restrictions and slavery.
“How different is this policy from slavery. If somebody has found greener pastures somewhere else and you’re holding onto them saying I cannot release them, please demonstrate the distinction between your policy and slavery?" Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna asked.
The Cabinet Secretary countered stressing that the government is trying to look out for the country's best interests especially considering it takes a lot of time to train health workers.
“As a country we do not want to spend time training them, then lose them to migration. For the new trainees that we have in the market they will need time, they need resources to be trained to get to the level of a specialised health worker, “ the CS remarked.
Despite acknowledging that the government is not in a position to absorb all medics into the market, the CS observed that specific categories of medical experts, such as oncologists, hold immense significance for the country's healthcare system. Consequently, the government has implemented policies aimed at retaining such crucial workers.
“For example, we have Cuban doctors working in this country. That was a government to government engagement and they have never had issues,” the CS remarked.
The CS argued the government needs to consult other countries because different health systems require different types of training.
“If nurses have to go to the U.K, we need to know the U.K government has specific openings for them," Nakhumicha noted.
Greener Pastures
The Kenyan health sector consistently faces a brain drain as medical practitioners seek more promising prospects overseas.
The allure of higher pay packages abroad entices many medics to leave Kenya, where such remuneration is not easily attainable.
Moreover, frustrations stemming from delayed salary payments, seasonal strikes, and unfavorable working conditions in public health facilities further drive Kenyan doctors to seek opportunities elsewhere.
Some doctors also choose to leave Kenya to establish their own medical practices in foreign countries due to the more favorable and rewarding working environments they offer.
