Uhuru's medical equipment plan gets a boost of Sh4.5b

NAIROBI: The Government plans to use part of Sh59.2 billion allocation to the health sector to lease medical equipment for the counties’ free maternity programme, health workers’ training and improvement of services at the two major referral hospitals.

In the Budget presented by National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich Thursday, Sh4.5 billion was allocated for leasing healthcare equipment for the counties, a plan fronted by President Uhuru Kenyatta.

This is good news for county governors who have since agreed to sign for the project designed to provide each of the selected hospitals with modern equipment for theatres, surgical and sterilisation procedures, laboratories, dialysis, ICU facilities, X-rays, ultrasounds and imaging.

The free maternity programme has been allocated Sh4.3 billion.

Mr Rotich said since the introduction of the programme, cases of maternal deaths in the country had reduced from over 500 per 100,000 live births to 488 deaths for every 100,000 live births annually.

The number of women giving birth in hospitals also rose to 70 per cent, up from 44 per cent.

Notable allocations in the health sector include the Sh3.5 billion earmarked for Kenya Medical Training centres; Sh9.3 billion for Kenyatta National Hospital; Sh5.8 billion for the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital and Sh1.9 billion for the Kenya Medical Research Institute.

SLUM PROGRAMME

Others are Sh3 billion for doctors, clinical officers/nurses and internship programmes.

The National Aids Control Council has been allocated Sh900 million; another Sh900 million goes to free access to all health centres and dispensaries; Sh1.0 billion for a slum health care programme and Sh19.7 billion to complement the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

“The Government recognises that investment in quality healthcare services is essential to developing a healthy population,” said Rotich.