• Three weeks ago, dialysis machines at Kilifi County referral hospital and Malindi sub-county hospital broke down, causing outrage among patients.
• The crisis at the Malindi facility began last year when five machines broke down.
Image: ELIAS YAA
Kilifi Governor Gedion Mung'aro has promised to secure more beds for kidney patients at Kilifi and Malindi hospitals through donor support.
About 50 kidney patients at Malindi Subcounty Hospital were put at risk after dialysis machines failed in the facility's renal section.
Three weeks ago, dialysis machines at Kilifi County Referral Hospital and Malindi Subcounty Hospital broke down, causing outrage among patients.
During an impromptu visit to Kilifi Referral Hospital, Governor Mung'aro said the county government repaired the machines, which had a faulty pipe.
He also divulged plans to enhance the capacity of the renal units, adding that his administration had received additional equipment from the Hungarian government.
Mung’aro said the machines at the Kilifi County Referral Hospital were functional, although the unit’s water system still had problems.
Stephen Angore, a patient, said only one out of the eight dialysis machines is operational, forcing health workers to reduce the dialysis time from the usual four hours to two hours per session.
The change — made to accommodate more patients — has significantly compromised the quality of care.
Angore said the usual requirement is at least two four-hour dialysis sessions per week, but now patients are forced to undergo only one two-hour session per week.
He said most patients cannot afford the Sh12,000 fee charged by private health facilities per session, adding that private facilities like Tawfiq and Mephi hospitals require cash payments because of challenges from the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) which leave patients reliant on the Malindi Subcounty Hospital Renal Unit.
The crisis at the Malindi facility began last year when five machines broke down. The three new ones installed by the government also failed, leaving only one functioning without a dialyzer.
Angore urged Governor Mung'aro to intervene and save the patients from imminent death, citing severe health complications such as difficulty breathing and swollen limbs due to inadequate dialysis.
Another patient, Abdulahi Golo echoed Angore's sentiments, urging the urgent need for county intervention to prevent further deaths among renal patients.
Daniel Wambua reminded Governor Mung'aro of his campaign pledge to purchase ten dialysis machines and revamp the county's health sector. Zilpah Wanje said the absence of reagents hinders proper patient care.
Mung’aro said the Kilifi County Hospital renal unit will receive 10 more dialysis machines from donors.
“We have a challenge with the space in Malindi but we will look for a makeshift area to install more dialysis machines,” said Mung’aro
Governor Mung'aro further said the county government received medical supplies from KEMSA. He said alternative strategies are in place to obtain medication in emergencies to combat fraud and the theft of medical drugs among health workers.
“We get medical supplies from KEMSA but in emergency cases, we can buy from chemists. We have also installed codes in trucks that supply medical supplies in our hospitals so that anytime they open the truck, we get a notification. We want to end the theft of public medical supplies,” he added.