Government should address strikes by healthcare workers, Senator Machage says

The national government should address the persistent health workers strikes if Kenyans are to enjoy quality healthcare, a senator has said.

Migori Senator Wilfred Machage on Tuesday called on President Uhuru Kenyatta to intervene in the strikes, “the only hitch” in quality healthcare service delivery.

But this was immediately followed by Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu’s assurance of “a solution” in sight.

Health workers in Nairobi and Meru counties are on strike over salary and promotion issues, just after a similar industrial action by nearly 500 doctors last month.

“Now, how will these women go to these health facilities to access free services and lie on the hospital beds but there are no health workers (to attend to them)?” asked Dr Machage.

The senator, who is a doctor, spoke at the launch of the expanded free maternity programme called Linda Mama, a flagship project of the Jubilee administration, at KICC, Nairobi.

The scheme, which will be run by the National Hospital Insurance Fund, targets nearly 200,000 women from poor and underprivileged backgrounds.

“The Senate Health Committee is inviting all stakeholders in the health sector in the beginning of November to address these persistent strikes among health workers,” said Dr Machage. “I ask you (President Kenyatta) to look at the concerns of health workers, find a solution to this problem.”

SOBER DEBATE

A week earlier, Dr Mailu had told the Nation there was a need for a sober debate on whether trade unions for health workers were doing more harm than good to medical care by the frequent strikes, which have led to loss of lives and compromised healthcare.

He said although it was not the ministry’s intention to take away employees’ right to be unionisable, they must ensure basic health services are provided even as they picket.

In a rejoinder to Senator Machage’s remarks, Dr Mailu said he was committed to addressing the work boycotts. He represented President Kenyatta at the launch.

Linda Mama will see more mothers deliver within the safe confines of hospitals, with skilled health attendants. The expectant mothers can get at least four antenatal checkups, delivery (normal and caesarean section) and postnatal checkups and family planning, as well as immunisation for their children.

It will also cover emergency referrals for pregnancy-related conditions and complications.

“I can confidently say that investing in the health of pregnant women has a spill-over macro-economic effect to communities and to our economy,” said Dr Mailu.

The programme will cater for free maternity services in more than 5,000 health facilities, including faith-based hospitals, which had been excluded.

Coincidentally, free maternity has been impeded by issues such as staff shortage, inadequate supplies, challenges aptly covered in a 2015 study — Implementation Challenges of Free Maternity Services Policy in Kenya: The Health Workers’ Perspective — by the Department of Health Systems Management, Kenya Methodist University (KeMU).