The Kakamega government plans to convert part of the referral hospital into an isolation centre for Covid-19 patients.
Governor Wycliffe Oparanya on Tuesday said one floor of the facility with 60 wards and 10 ICU rooms will be devoted to the care of coronavirus patients once complete.
“The floor is sixty per cent complete and all that is left is to fit beds and toilet facilities. We shall offer quality services at the isolation centre,” he said.
Oparanya spoke when he toured the hospital to assess the progress of its construction. The first phase of the Sh6.2 billion hospital will be launched in July.
Kakamega county has six ICU beds at the general hospital but only four are operational. The other two do not have ventilators. The infectious disease unit is the current isolation unit.
Oparanya asked the county assembly to expedite approval of the second supplementary budget to give his administration authority to spend Sh105 million meant for the Covid-19 fight.
"Delays in passing the budget has dragged us behind in preparations to deal with the pandemic," he said.
The budget before the assembly seeks to increase the health sector allocation from about Sh710 million approved in the first supplementary budget to more than Sh1 billion to bolster the fight against coronavirus.
It also increases the allocation for agriculture to Sh993 million from Sh640 million to support the sector during the crisis.
Oparanya said they will use the money to buy personal protective equipment, pay medics’ allowances and buy food to support vulnerable groups.
He said part of the money would be used to fast-track completion of the floor earmarked for isolation wards and ICU rooms.
The county assembly is grappling with meeting quorum because of the social distancing rule.
The governor dismissed as unfounded and malicious claims his administration has embezzled Covid-19 funds.
"The assembly has not yet passed the budget so this allegation of misappropriation of funds is false. Those spreading those lies should give us a break,” he added.
Edited by Frank Obonyo