Patients waiting to be treated
By Felix Njenga
Worth Noting:
- “Nobody in our organization gets paid, no stipends, for doing this work, we give our vacation up , pay our air fare, our lodgings, the only thing that we get is transportation to and from the hotel and medical camp site. These are 100% volunteers to Kenyans,” he said.
- He said that hypertension and diabetes was the most common ailment they have encountered affecting many people.
- “Hypertension and diabetes even in the USA is the most pressing issue to educate people on how to manage their wellbeing because with high blood pressure comes stroke , heart attacks and with diabetes becomes a satresser with all of your organs, stresses your vision and you can lose your limbs,” he said.
Kiambu residents were reprieved after they got free treatment as Kiambu county health workers went on a strike over nonpayment of salaries.
The residents got to be treated for various illnesses which included family counseling, mental health, blood pressure and blood sugars, hypertension and diabetes, eye and ear problems, HIV/Aids counselling services among other ailments by Unimedilink international Inc. from the United States of America.
According to Joseph Nyaga, a patient said that he got relieved after he heard that there is a free medical camp at Kangoya village in ACK St Andrew Kangoya church in Kiambu sub county and got treated .
‘I had visited Kiambu level 5 hospital but there were no services being given since the health workers were on strike and I heard that there was a free medical camp two kilometres away from the main hospital and I rushed there where I was treated for free and even got medication,” Nyaga said.
Bruce Capagli, a field medic with Unimedilink said that they were referred to a Kenyan living with them in the USA to come and offer medical assistance to Kenyans as a way of giving back to the community. They have been able to treat patients in Githunguri and Kiambu sub counties with the free medical camp ending on Sunday.
“Kenyans in the USA approached us to help them give back to the communities they come from through medical assistance. We have visited Kenyans in the rural areas and we have been overwhelmed by the response of the people who need medical services and we are happy to help out ,” Capagli said.
He said that in Unimedlink they believe in reaching out and helping other people is a great reward in itself.
“Nobody in our organization gets paid, no stipends, for doing this work, we give our vacation up , pay our air fare, our lodgings, the only thing that we get is transportation to and from the hotel and medical camp site. These are 100% volunteers to Kenyans,” he said.
He said that hypertension and diabetes was the most common ailment they have encountered affecting many people.
“Hypertension and diabetes even in the USA is the most pressing issue to educate people on how to manage their wellbeing because with high blood pressure comes stroke , heart attacks and with diabetes becomes a satresser with all of your organs, stresses your vision and you can lose your limbs,” he said.
He said that they are trying to innovate people back into health care as most may not have finance for treatment or medical check up.
He called on the government to put the healthcare of the people first and work with private partners to do what they can to improve and provide quality health services for the people.
Loise Nduta a counselling psychologist and organiser of the free medical camp said that her community needed medical attention as many have been hard hit financially and cannot be able to afford to go to hospitals for treatment.
“I went to the USA and met Unimedilink people through Kenyans living in the USA and they agreed to volunteer to offer medical services for free. I went through the government to acquire permits for them to come so that my community can be offered with free medical services and I was granted,’ Nduta said.
She said that many took the opportunity to access medical services as they have suffered with nothing to do and stayed at home waiting for any outcome due to lack of money to attend hospital.
“If people do get access to health services we would not have many people turning up for free medical camps. Many who attended the camp are the elderly as they do not have money to buy medicine but they have gotten them for free today,” she said.
She pleaded with the government to have a dialogue with the medical personnel so that their grievances be addressed so that Kenyans may not continue to suffer for lack of treatment.
David Maina, Kiambu county government health admin said that the medics go slow is a national matter since money has not yet been released to the county governments by the exchequer.
“There is that matter of medics striking in kiambu over non-payment of salaries and this is a national issue and I am pleading with the medics to be patient as the issue is being handled,’ Maina said.
The Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) has since said that the medics are on strike as it is a big issue in Kiambu county as the salaries have been delayed and the county government is noncommittal to pay or even have a meeting with the union to table issues.
The union through the secretary Frank Mugambi said that professionals on casual terms have not been paid for 3 months and the county government has failed to honour due promotions as was agreed from the return to work formula.
He said that there are multiple unnecessary transfers and having over 200 officers removed from the county public officers health cover (MUA) without explanations.
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