NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 15 – “The government has achieved its goal on improving health care provision,” says President Uhuru Kenyatta.
While delivering his State of the Nation address Wednesday, the President pointed out that majority of the hospitals have been equipped with modern diagnostic facilities.
“ Ninety two hospitals across all counties have now been equipped with modern diagnostic equipment, through the innovative managed equipment service program,” he noted, “This is an improvement since only four referral hospitals had such equipment when they came into power in 2013.”
He stated that maternal care has also greatly improved with the number of mothers delivering under the care of skilled medical attendants rising to over 1.2 million by the end of 2016.
“Maternal deaths and infant mortality rates have fallen quickly, proof that the joint free maternity proramme between the National and County Governments works,” the President said. “The medical equipment scheme on which nearly every county has played a part has given Kenyans access to life-saving screenings for cancer and other diseases,” he said.
He said counties had prioritized primary health care, community facilities and also focused on eliminating infant mortality leading to a drop of up to 39 per cent in infant deaths per 1,000 live births.
The President noted that the number of people who have taken up the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) has also risen with the number of Kenyans with access to outpatient medical care rising to from 3.8 m in 2013 to 5.8 m in 2017.
President Kenyatta attributed the improvement in health care to the support for devolution that has enabled the country, in partnership with county governments, to seek and implement projects, which have a real and positive impact on country residents.
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