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Nairobi,Kenya: Kenyatta National Hospital needs at least Sh2.7 billion to set up a well-equipped cancer centre.
The hospital's management told the National Assembly's Committee on Health yesterday that one of the biggest challenges at the facility was cancer treatment.
They pointed out that the committee hospital receives about 4,000 new cancer patients annually, but does not have adequate equipment and personnel to handle them.
"The hospital needs new machines and construction of peripherals to have a complete cancer treatment centre all estimated to cost about Sh2.7 billion." said the hospital's Deputy Director Simeon Monda,
Dr Monda said part of the equipment needed is a cobalt machine to replace one that has been in use for over 20 years. According to Monda, the manufacturer recommendations stipulate that the machine should not be used for than 10 years.
"The cobalt machine is a work horse and it can handle many more patients as compared to other machines," he added.
No beds
The Health Committee led by Rachel Nyamai (Kitui South) also heard of the myriad other challenges plaguing the critical care unit such as lack of beds among others.
"Patients die because they cannot access the critical care unit. We currently have six beds in the critical care unit (CCU) and no beds in the high dependency unit (HDU). When a patient comes from the CCU they should go to the HDU but sometimes we are forced to take them to the general ward, which may not have the kind of specialised equipment needed," Monda explained.
He said the hospital has a deficit of 31 CCU beds and 104 HDU beds as well as additional nurses and doctors trained in intensive care.
The team also said the emergency unit needs funding of up to Sh100 million a year.
The committee assured the managers it would push for allocation of more funds to the facility. Ms Nyamai also reiterated the need to put more emphasis on preventive health.
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