On Thursday, March 13, patients at the Makadara General Hospital in Mombasa were stranded after doctors failed to report to work. The doctors were on strike following the ongoing nationwide strike.
Most families were forced to transfer their loved ones from the hospital to seek help elsewhere considering the ineffective service delivery experienced in the hospitals.
“It’s bad in there, the doctors haven’t shown up and the nurses can’t handle the situation,” a resident stated.
“My mum is ailing from a kidney disease, I’m here today to get her discharged but there is a bit of confusion at the moment.”
The residents lamented the high treatment cost in private hospitals, requesting the government to solve the issues between the doctors and offer a solution before the situation worsens.
“The government needs to remember health issues are very critical. The doctors need to go back to work because, with healthy people, it translates to growth in the economy,” another resident explained.
Consequently, Migori County medical practitioners failed to report to work, leaving several patients stranded in various hospitals.
In Eldoret town in Uasin Gishu County, KMPDU vowed to remain at their homes, as residents lamented the lack of services at various hospitals in the area.
The Departmental Committee on Health invited the Cabinet Secretary (CS) Susan Nakhumicha to address concerns raised by Members of Parliament (MPs) regarding National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) remittances where she failed to reply to a question from one of the members of the Committee, regarding the ongoing doctor’s strike.
On Tuesday, the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Doctor’s Union (KMPDU) Secretary General Davji Atellah, announced a nationwide doctor’s strike. He cited the government’s failure to address their grievances as the reason for their discontent.
“It is sad that despite availing ourselves for meetings at the Ministry of Health, there have been no worthwhile developments to report to you, and tomorrow midnight, our strike notice shall expire and our industrial action will begin,” Atellah stated.
However, the Employment and Labour Relations Court Wednesday stopped the planned strike to create room for negotiations on service delivery pending the strike.
