County offers free healthcare in honour of Matiba

There have been long queues at the Kenneth Matiba Eye and Dental Hospital since the veteran politician died.

The announcement by Murang’a Governor Mwangi wa Iria that the hospital will be offering free medical services in honour of Mr Matiba, has brought reprieve to families seeking specialised treatment.

Patients have been flocking Kenol town on the Nairobi-Nyeri highway where the four-storey hospital is situated, indicating that accessing affordable healthcare in the country is still a big challenge. 

Patients come from as far as Lamu, Garissa and Nyandarua.

EYE INJURY
Kelvin Mukhwaya, a resident from Siaya County whose eye had been pierced by barbed wire, is one of the beneficiaries of the free services.

Mr Mukhwaya was injured while repairing a fence and was rushed to a local dispensary.

The health workers at the facility used drops on the bleeding eye, worsening the situation.

His friends brought him to the Kenneth Matiba Eye and Dental Hospital where he was received in the emergency rooms. What followed were hours in the theatre to fix his eye.

“One of my eyes was swollen and was on the verge of being removed. The quick intervention by doctors here saved me. I am also happy that I was not asked to pay for the services,” he said at the hospital.

PATIENTS
According to the governor, the hospital is offering free services to honour the late Matiba, who is a national icon celebrated for his selfless fight against one-party state.

Matiba came from Murang’a and was at one time Health minister.

The hospital is conducting eye surgery, dental extraction, root canal refilling and related eye and dental services.

The governor, in an interview on Monday, said since the hospital was started one-and-a-half years ago, over 400,000 patients with eye-related problems have been treated while 70,000 patients with dental issues have been assisted.

More than 200,000 patients in the county have also received reading eye glasses, he said.

FREE TREATMENT
He noted that owing to the increasing number of patients, his administration has set aside two acres near Kimorori Primary School at Kenol to build a permanent hospital.

The county currently rents the building in which the hospital is housed.

The governor also reassured Kenyans that the county will extend the free services depending on the number of patients who will be seeking treatment and the availability of supplies.

“We had come up with the idea of introducing free medical services to patients with eye and dental problems so that whenever a patient comes out of the facility having been attended to, he remembers the good deeds of the late Matiba who used his wealth and health for us to be where we are,” the governor said.