Awiti on the spot as Homa Bay ICU down over staff shortage

The Homa Bay county referral hospital is in a sorry state amid a surge in Covid-19 cases in the lake region.

The Intensive Care Unit is dysfunctional, drugs are in short supply while many crucial departments are understaffed.

Critically ill patients have been left to their own devices as residents and healthcare workers call on Governor Cyprian Awiti to intervene and salvage the situation.

Patients in need of critical care, including those suffering from Covid-19, are being attended to at the High Dependency Unit (HDU) that is being managed by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), an international independent medical organisation.

The 10-bed ICU wing lacks qualified personnel to manage it, defeating the whole purpose of putting it up at the cost of the taxpayer. Of the 10 beds available, five have medical machines, including ventilators.

Senator Moses Kajwang’ expressed concern over failure by the county administration to make good use of the facility to save lives.

“The failure by the county administration to recruit enough health personnel is a setback to the management of Covid-19, especially after the Ministry of Health announced the spike in cases in the region,” he said.

Never fully utilised 

The facility was opened by Health Chief Administrative Secretary Rashid Aman in September last year, yet it has never been fully utilised ever since.

While most ICUs in the region were full at the height of the pandemic, there was no pressure on the facility in Homa Bay. However, the HDU was full with 24 patients on Monday when the senator and health workers’ union officials visited.

The hospital’s chief executive, Dr Peter Ogolla, confirmed the ICU lacks enough personnel and pleaded with authorities to hire staff.

“The ICU has two critical care nurses against a requirement of at least five. They have three shifts. They are also entitled to sick leave and, when they do, there should be someone in-charge. Our ICU has not reached this level,” Dr Ogolla said, adding that a critically ill patient should be attended to by two nurses.

He, however, said the hospital had done well in containing the pandemic, including the installation of a 3,200-litre oxygen tank.

“We are better this year compared to how we were last year. There have been a lot of improvements in the management of the virus,” said Dr Ogolla.

Since the outbreak of pandemic in March last year, at least 1,000 cases have been reported in Homa Bay, with at least 50 deaths.

Mr Kajwang’ said residents would lose trust in the county government if such a crucial facility stayed closed for much longer.

“An ICU is not about beds and ventilators. Having personnel who operate the machines is a key component as well. Shortage of health workers is a serious impediment to provision of health services to our people,” the senator said.

No doctor 

The Kenya Union of Clinical Officers chairman, Mr Stephen Obunga, shocked the senator when he observed that there was no single doctor stationed at the ICU.

“It’s just a building without a medical team. The ICU should have at least one doctor, a clinician, four critical care nurses and other specialised staff. Sadly, there are only two nurses here, who cannot handle the workload,” said Mr Obunga.

“We also need an ICU laboratory to ensure smooth operations. Otherwise, the facility is well equipped but human resource is the major challenge,” he added, urging the national government to intervene.

[email protected]