KISUMU, Kenya, Aug 7 – The Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) will begin offering red blood cell exchange (RBCx) therapy from September 1, in a major boost for sickle cell disease treatment in western Kenya.
The hospital has acquired a new apheresis machine through technical support from Nairobi West Hospital, making it possible to provide the advanced, non-surgical therapy for the first time at the public facility.
The RBCx procedure involves replacing sickle-shaped red blood cells with healthy donor cells, improving oxygen delivery in the body and significantly reducing complications. Medical experts say the intervention can extend life expectancy and ease the long-term burden of care for patients, particularly in counties with high prevalence of sickle cell disease.
The treatment will be administered at Victoria Hospital, JOOTRH’s dedicated hematology and sickle cell centre. Officials say the move will bring the critical service closer to patients in Kisumu and surrounding counties who often face long wait times or are forced to seek treatment abroad.
The Social Health Authority (SHA) has committed to subsidizing the cost of the therapy, making it accessible to low-income families.
As part of the rollout, Nairobi West Hospital—home to Kenya’s only bone marrow transplant (BMT) unit—will send specialists to Kisumu to train JOOTRH staff and oversee implementation. The Nairobi West BMT unit, which began operations in 2022, has performed successful transplants with zero mortality to date, according to hospital records.
Dr. Kibet Shikuku, Medical Director at Nairobi West Hospital, said the initiative is part of efforts to strengthen Kenya’s internal capacity for specialized care. “We want to reduce the number of outbound referrals by enabling more facilities across the country to handle advanced treatments,” he said.
JOOTRH CEO Dr. Richard Lesiyampe described the project as a “lifeline” for many families. “We are now able to offer services that would otherwise be out of reach for the majority of our patients,” he said.
The collaboration between the two hospitals is part of a broader shift toward decentralizing specialized healthcare, a model that experts say could reduce costs, increase access, and ease pressure on major hospitals in Nairobi.
As demand for specialized interventions grows, the partnership offers a template for how public and private health institutions can work together to expand services within Kenya’s borders.
