Tewnwek Hospital heart centre key boost
A little rural hospital is making a huge contribution to the provision of highly specialised medical care. Heart surgery is a sophisticated operation that is often carried out in top hospitals in Nairobi and other major towns.
However, deep in Bomet County in the South Rift, this small Christian hospital is making it possible for patients, who would not afford the fees in the elite medical centres, to access the life-saving attention by specialists. It is this specialised treatment that costs many families an arm and leg to fly their kin to India or Europe.
Tenwek Hospital, whose doctors performed open-heart surgeries for the first time in 2008, is set to scale up. It plans to set up a new heart surgeries centre. From the initial 12 patients, the hospital has been carrying out more than 250 operations a year, earning international recognition.
The other health facilities that offer heart surgeries are the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret. Director-General of Health Patrick Amoth says Tenwek has been a trailblazer in open heart surgeries, with 2,000 operations already conducted.
Now, the hospital is set for a major breakthrough with a ground-breaking for a Sh4.5 billion heart centre that will raise its capacity from catering for 250 patients to 2,000 patients annually. It will be built and equipped with support from American donors. Currently, the hospital handles 50 per cent of the corrective surgeries done in the country annually, with many dying while waiting. Having a 176-bed facility will be a huge specialised medical care boost.
Access to affordable quality healthcare is a fundamental right of every Kenyan, but it remains elusive due to lack of funds. Universal health coverage is an idea the authorities have set their eyes for a while. The government should encourage more private initiatives such as Tenwek Hospital to complement its efforts in healthcare provision.
