Fix Afya House mess to ease healthcare delivery
All eyes are on the health sector as the country grapples with serious challenges in the delivery of this vital service.
Access to quality and affordable healthcare is not just a human right, but also a constitutional requirement that often hangs in the balance.
The chaotic roll-out since last October of the new Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) has left many critically ill people in grave danger amid technological and other hitches. Patients requiring dialysis, chemotherapy or urgent surgery have had to dig deep into their pockets and pay up.
But this is not the only problem afflicting the sector. The Ministry of Health headquarters, Afya House, Nairobi, which is the nerve centre for policy making and recruitment of qualified personnel, is in a big mess.
The Presidential Task Force on Human Resources for Health has found that a multiplicity of laws, regulatory authorities and lack of proper data are to blame. The task force says the time has come to strike out and streamline the conflicting laws. According to its chairperson, Prof Khama Rogo, some of the technical and administrative parts are not working together with the two Principal Secretaries for Medical Services and Public Health hardly talking to each other, hampering co-ordination.
There is a need to shape policies to address workforce challenges and improve health service delivery. The Kenyatta National Hospital, for example, has 1,000 medical students paid by the counties and yet it cannot fully account for them.
There is also a proliferation of Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) campuses countrywide, with almost every MP rushing to open one in his or her constituency, but the quality of training has terribly declined, as there are not enough tutors.
The task force has also accused the ministry of failing to focus on institutions such as the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (Kemsa) and the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri), which can generate their own resources.
These crucial observations should be used to help streamline the health sector for efficient delivery of services.