State should pull all stops to end strike by medical staff

Patients waiting to be treated at Muhila Mission Hospital, Khwisero. [Benjamin Sakwa, Standard]

Doctors have today joined nurses and clinical officers in a nationwide strike. This comes after failed negotiations between the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPPDU) and government representatives. KMPPDU had earlier warned doctors would go on strike on December 7, 2020, but extended the strike notice by 14 days following intervention by both the National Assembly and Senate’s health committees.

Clinical officers and nurses have been on strike since December 7, yet there is no indication that anything is being done to call off the strike. Among other things, the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (Kuco), nurses and KMPPDU demand that health workers be provided with Personal Protective Equipment against Covid-19 and also be given comprehensive medical and group life covers.