Kenyan doctors countrywide, including those in private hospitals, have given a seven-day ultimatum to the government under threat of a nationwide strike.
They doctors are demanding better working conditions, implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), and medical cover and resolution to migratory problems to a new national health service, among other issues, reports The East African.
This will exacerbate an already dire situation, with the stand-off for the past week between the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) and the government – Ministries of Health, Labour and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) – appearing to be at a standstill.
Doctors in public hospitals who reported for duty last week were prevented from working by union officials, and all emergency and critical services have ground to a halt.
Pumwani Maternity Hospital, a leading facility, has stopped admitting pregnant women as there are no doctors to attend to them.
“This is going to be a big deal when we start losing patients because of the government’s stubbornness,” said KMPDU secretary-general Davji Atellah.
“I know our patients are suffering but so are we. If I cannot even be attended to in any hospital in the country because I cannot afford the services… which government wants to deny its doctors medical insurance?” he asked.
He said reducing the pay for medical interns and healthcare workers was a slap in the face that would not be taken lightly, referring to a circular from SRC warning that interns’ salaries would be slashed by 91%.
Public Health Principal Secretary Mary Muthoni, in an affidavit filed at the Employment and Labour Relations Court, said issues raised by KMPDU, including implementation of the CBA, salary delays, employment of doctors, posting of interns, postgraduate training and promotion of doctors, all had budgetary implications.
She says when the CBA was signed in 2017, there were fewer interns and budgetary allocation had been adequate at the time.
“The Ministry has no control over the number of students being trained … at institution, and cannot control the numbers requiring placement … it may not be able to absorb and pay all of them,” she said.
A conciliation meeting failed last week after Labour, Treasury and Health Cabinet secretaries and the chairpersons of the Public Service Commission and SRC all failed to show up.
NHI problems
Adding to patients’ woes, some hospitals have been turning away those who rely on National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) cards to pay for service.
Despite government reassurances that the one-year transition from NHIF to the Social Health Insurance Fund, which started last year, would be smooth and patients would continue to get services, the reality is that a number of them are being forced to forego treatment for lack of cash.
Earlier this month, more than 400 rural hospitals announced their withdrawal of service for NHIF-covered patients over an outstanding debt of millions.
The Fund’s implementation has been marred by confusion, controversy and opposition, with KMPDU complaining that the change will hurt Kenyans working in the informal sector who have no regular income and who have to pay their annual amount upfront or risk failing to access services.
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