Kihika returns from US amid Nakuru health care breakdown

After an extended absence from office, Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika has returned to the country with her twins.

She travelled to the United States late last year to give birth, while the health sector in her county has been facing significant challenges, including a severe shortage of doctors and nurses, as well as inadequately equipped facilities.

Her return coincided with the investigation into the death of Elizabeth Wairimu, a woman who passed away shortly after giving birth at the Margaret Kenyatta Mother and Baby Maternity Unit in Nakuru.

Wairimu’s family has accused Nakuru Level V Hospital of negligence in handling her medical care.

Yesterday, Dr Titus Ngulungu, the government pathologist, accompanied by Dr Isak Abdi, the family pathologist, conducted the post-mortem on Wairimu’s body.

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The results of the autopsy indicated that she died due to respiratory distress. She lacked oxygen. Dr Ngulungu termed the report as inconclusive.

Wairimu’s father and stepfather who attended the autopsy, declined to comment on the results. 

Kihika’s administration has been criticised over what residents and health professionals say is poor management of the health sector, particularly at Nakuru Level V Hospital.

Dire situation

Recent accounts from patients seeking care at the facility reveal harrowing experiences due to its deteriorating conditions.

Wairimu’s case has drawn attention to the hospital’s poor services, prompting Roselyn Mungai, the County Executive Committee Member for Health, to acknowledge the alarming state of the hospital.

The facility is grappling with an acute shortage of doctors and nurses, as well as a lack of essential equipment.

“The maternity wing is severely overwhelmed. Considering the number of deliveries happening here compared to the number of nurses we have, it is severely suboptimal,” Mungai stated.

According to Dr Stephen Omondi, the South Rift Branch Secretary of the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KPMDU), the 26 intern doctors working at the Level 5 facility are overworked.

“The interns do not even get a day off; they work from Monday to Monday. They only get two to three nights off, but sometimes they work for 48 hours without rest,” said Dr. Omondi.

He pointed out that for the hospital to operate effectively, each ward should have at least six medical officers, yet the Level V hospital has only two per ward.

“If one goes on leave, the remaining medical officer must care for all the patients,” he explained. While the facility has the required number of specialists, patients must first go through a medical officer before seeing a specialist.

Dr Omondi revealed that the hospital is short of at least 23 medical officers.

In the paediatric ward, which ideally should have 12 medical officers, the Margaret Kenyatta Mother and Baby Maternity Unit is left with only six.

Overall, Omondi observed that the hospital needs at least 300 additional nurses. He agrees that this acute staff shortage has significantly contributed to rising  complaints of negligence from patients.

The Sunday Standard has discovered that the hospital has six ICU beds, yet only four are equipped with ventilators.

Additionally, there is no ICU for children, and while there are six High Dependence Units (HDUs), none have been functional due to a lack of nurses since 2018.

 Patients are often found sleeping outside in the cold, with elderly women wrapped in lessos and thin clothing as they wait for medical attention in a facility that can no longer accommodate them.

Some distressed patients have turned to social media, sharing videos and photos to highlight their plight and draw attention from authorities.

 The suffering endured under the leadership of Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika is not only disappointing but also a clear failure of her responsibility to protect and care for the citizens who elected her.

Two weeks ago, a viral video emerged showing patients being evicted from the casualty wing by security guards and forced to spend the night outside in the cold due to overcrowding.

This video illustrated the grim healthcare situation in the county, which is struggling to meet its residents’ needs.

Nakuru Senator Tabitha Karanja Keroche, a vocal critic of the governor, has since petitioned the Senate for a comprehensive audit of the hospital after a surge in maternal and infant deaths.

Earlier this year, the hospital made headlines for troubling reasons when the body of a minor went missing under unclear circumstances.

In a statement, Senator Karanja condemned the county government, labelling the deaths as avoidable tragedies for many families.

She attributed these fatalities to management negligence and the leadership vacuum created by the Governor’s absence.

“It is painful that the late Wairimu sought medical care for the same reason that the Governor sought treatment in the U.S. One mother returned with healthy babies, while another never came home, and we cannot afford to continue like this.” She said.

However, the hospital medical superintendent Dr James Waweru, has admitted that the hospital is underequipped.

The maternity wing has a bed capacity of 250 and is often full to capacity, with some mothers even sharing beds, but it lacks ICU beds specifically dedicated to it.

As a result of emergencies at the maternity wing, patients are referred to ICU beds handling patients from the general wards, about 300 metres away.