Kenyatta Hospital in deal with India to train doctors

Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) Chief Executive Officer Lily Koros and Ms Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director of Apollo Hospitals Group after they signed a MoU. The MoU will focus on capacity building between Apollo Hospital and KNH.PHOTO: JAMES WANZALA/STANDARD

 

 

NAIROBI: Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) has signed an agreement with Apollo Hospitals Group to enhance health care co-operation in Kenya.

The agreement between the two institutions will see Kenyan doctors and nurses receive training locally and in India to build up the capacity of medical practitioners.

Apollo’s management was part of the business delegation that accompanied Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Kenya last week.

Reduced infections

“The agreement will also involve high impact-based initiatives and team learning in, for example, reduction of infections during surgeries,” said Sangita Reddy, the joint managing director of Apollo Hospitals Group.

Specialists from the firm will also visit KNH to conduct joint medical camps, educational lectures and training programmes.

Ms Reddy added that Apollo will work on developing centres of excellence, with plans for training personnel for a liver unit already underway.

“I hope that with this MoU, the number of referrals to India will reduce significantly.”

KNH CEO Lily Koros welcomed the partnership, saying it would be a major milestone for KNH and the entire health sector.

“I am very happy about the MoU and looking forward to operationalising its content,” she said, adding that KNH will set up telemedicine for super-specialty consultations and explore other possible areas of collaboration in the near future.

Airtel Africa also signed an agreement to boost healthcare across Africa by giving users easy access to Apollo specialists. The telecommunications firm will enable subscribers to access personalised advice in real time through its service, Ask Apollo.

Airtel Africa will provide customers with discounted consultations, and enable payment options through Airtel Money or airtime.

Ask Apollo will run as a web and mobile-enabled patient-centric service, allowing subscribers to talk to doctors face-to-face through video conferencing, or connect with them via voice or email.

Users will also be allowed to upload clinical information, including reports, images and scans, for analysis from Apollo experts, who can then provide an opinion within a stipulated time.