Report: Kemsa inefficiency cause of delay in supplies
Kenya Medical Supplies Authority board chair Irungu Nyakera (right) with then-acting CEO Andrew Mulwa addressing journalists about the agency’s turnaround efforts on February 21.
What you need to know:
- In 2021, Kemsa procured drugs worth Sh39 billion, but only Sh30 billion worth were delivered to public health facilities.
Kemsa takes more than twice the targeted time to deliver orders placed by county governments.
Inefficiencies at the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (Kemsa) are the cause of serious delays in delivery of essential drugs and related products to health facilities in the counties.
The Kenya Health Sector Report 2020/21 to 2022/23 reveals that Kemsa takes more than twice the targeted time to deliver orders placed by county governments.
It further indicates that the agency has been unable to fully utilise the resources allocated for drug purchases.
In some instances, health commodities were procured but never delivered to health facilities, causing significant hardship for Kenyans who have to seek costly alternatives in private facilities.
In 2023, Kemsa procured health products and technologies worth Sh29 billion, but only Sh27 billion worth of these products were delivered to 9,129 health facilities nationwide.
The report notes that Kemsa’s inefficiency is partly due to ongoing reforms that have demotivated staff and reduced productivity.
“In the year, the agency stock availability for essential health products and technologies was lower than previous years due to difficulties in maintaining an adequate cash flow for supplier payments,” reads part of the report.
In 2021, Kemsa procured drugs and other essentials worth Sh39 billion, but only Sh30 billion worth were delivered to public health facilities. The situation improved in 2022 when the agency delivered Sh28 billion worth of health products against the procurement of Sh27 billion.
Despite introducing a digital medical commodities ordering system, which allows county governments to place, track and assess their orders, Kemsa has continued to struggle with delivery times.
The agency took more than two weeks to deliver health commodities to hospitals, against a target of seven days, and 20 days to deliver to primary health facilities, against a target of 10 days.
The report blames logistical issues for the delays, citing disconnected warehouses in Nairobi that prolonged order processing times due to poor route integration. Insecurity in some rural areas further hindered the agency's ability to deliver.
The report recommends addressing these logistical challenges, improving resource utilisation, and stabilising the organisational environment to enhance health commodities delivery.
“The ongoing organisational reforms introduced an element of uncertainty. This uncertainty had a noticeable impact on the morale of the staff resulting in reduced productivity and engagement,” states the report.
At the same time, the report notes that Kenya has recorded tremendous achievements in blood donation over the last three years, with units of blood donated between 2021 to December last year increasing by 30 per cent.
But despite the encouraging growth in donations, patients, especially in private and mission hospitals, do not fully benefit. Those in need of blood transfusion must provide a donor to replace the units they consume before they are transfused.
The report shows that in 2021, 178,249 units of blood were collected against the minimum World Health Organization target of 500,000. In 2022, blood units totalling 273,349 were collected, representing a 57 per cent growth. By December last year, 412,868 units were donated.
The growth is attributed to the acquisition of blood component preparation equipment distributed to blood donation satellite facilities across the country. These investments increased the national blood safety testing capacity from 1,500 to 2,500 daily tests, equivalent to about 650,000 tests annually. As a result, there has been a 90 per cent reduction in the time from donation to result confirmation, enabling more timely and safe blood transfusions.
Currently, the Kenya National Blood Transfusion Services (KNBTS) operates six regional and 43 satellite centres.
However, the biggest challenge yet to be addressed by KNBTS is the direct or hidden charges, especially by private hospitals, where patients in need of blood transfusion are delayed waiting for a donor to replace the blood they will consume, even though the blood is donated for free and most hospitals have blood banks within their facilities.
