Medicine runs in the George Magoha family

Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha.

Former Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha.

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

Medicine runs in the family of former Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Albert Omore Magoha, who died earlier this week following a cardiac arrest.

Prof Magoha, who died at the age of 71, was a urologist while his wife Dr Barbara Odudu Magoha is a consultant obstetrician and gynecologist. The couple’s only child Dr Michael Magoha is also a physician.

Born in Kisumu County in 1952, Prof Magoha was a graduate of  Medicine and Surgery from the University of Lagos in Nigeria. 

He specialised in urology, health care that deals with diseases of the male and female urinary tract (kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra).

He also studied at University of Ibadan, Royal Postgraduate Medical School in the United Kingdom and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

Prof Magoha joined the Education Ministry as Cabinet Secretary in President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration in 2019 and served until August 2022.

Early this year, he got a job at Maseno University’ School of Medicine.

Before joining the Education docket, Prof Magoha was the chairman of the Kenya National Examination Council (Knec). He has also served as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Nairobi.

During his practise, Prof Magoha ran a clinic in Hurlingham, Nairobi and was also a consultant urologist at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH).

His wife, Dr Odudu Magoha, was born in Nigeria. The met at medical school in the west African country. 

Dr Barbara Odudu Magoha at the Lee Funeral Home on January 24, 2023.

Photo credit: Francis Nderitu | Nation Media Group

Dr Odudu Magoha holds a Bachelor’s degree in Medicine from the University of Lagos a and a Masters’ degree in Obstetrics and Gynecology from the University of Nairobi.

She works as a consultant obstetrician and gynecologist at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH). She is also a medicine lecturer at the University of Nairobi (UoN).

The couple’s son, Dr Michael, is a neurosurgeon and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Medicine and Surgery with a specialisation in neurosurgery from the UoN. 

Dr Michael Magoha with relatives and friends at the Lee Funeral Home on January 24, 2023.

Photo credit: Francis Nderitu | Nation Media Group

He currently doubles up as a lecturer in neurosurgery at UoN and a consulting surgeon at KNH.