Nairobi,KENYA: Kenya medical practitioners and dentist board KMPDU alongside Boresha Maisha initiative, are planning to take a petition that addresses key issues in the health sector in parliament for discussion and implementation.
Among the key issues to be petition is, consideration of transfer and reversal of the health function back to the National Government
Speaking during health stakeholders forum in Nairobi, former Nyeri women rep. Priscilla Nyokabi, cited that KMPDU and Boresh Maisha are collectively engaged in advocacy to support the full realization of the universal Healthcare initiative by President Uhuru Kenyatta as part of the Big 4 agenda.
“The function was transferred to county governments complicating existing problems in health care in Kenya. The constitution in Article 187 envisage and provides for transfer of functions and power between levels of government.” She said.
Nyokabi added that there is need of creating a mechanism that enables transfer or movement of Health function between the national government and a county government as envisioned in article 187 of the constitution.
The petition touches on the need to add more referral hospital from the current 2 (Kenyatta national hospital and Moi referral hospital in Eldoret) to about 13 referral hospital across the 47 counties.
“The proposal is to elevate and designate the existing 11 level 5 Hospital into Regional referral and training hospitals to be managed by the national government.
Nyokabi argued that some hospitals in a county serves more than one county thus, application of the term Regional referral hospitals.
Another key issue raised on the petition is to have funds sent by treasury directly to the hospitals thus improving service delivery.
” There is need to review the public finance management act and the health act to create a provision allowing treasury to send level 5 hospitals funds direct to the hospitals account.” She added.
According to Nyokabi, Kenya has attained the UN standard of Police versus population ratio. The country has 16,000 doctors out of whom around 8,000 are in active practice. The country should now embark on dealing with doctors versus population ratio and similar to the issue of police where we employed 10,000 per year and Kenya should seek to employ around 10,000 doctors per year for a period of four years.
Nyokabi was alongside KMPDU Sec general Auma Oluga, the chairman Samuel Oroko, former Meru Women Rep. Florence Kajuju among others.
The petition is said to be filed in the cause of the year.
