NON-PAYMENT of health workers in Nairobi could have led to negligence of duty that has been blamed for deaths of patients in city hospitals, it emerged yesterday.
A senior health officer at City Hall told the Star yesterday the medics could be in a silence go-slow as they have gone four months without pay.
"This is a very serious and sensitive matter. Nobody wants to talk about it because of the weight it carries. The fact is that our nurses are suffering. They have not been paid for four months now," he said.
The source said the medics, mostly nurses fear coming out publicly to demand the pay for fear of losing their jobs. At least 10 nurses, among them former Kenya National Union of nurses Nairobi charter Eunice Ngare were sacked for taking part in an "illegal strike" last year.
Yesterday, Kenya National Union of Nurses chairman John Bii confirmed the nurses have not been paid for four months and said the union has taken up matter.
"It is true the nurses have not been paid. We have taken the issue to court on behalf of the nurses and we hope the court will listen to us," said Bii.
Bii said nurses, mostly those from Pumwani Maternity Hospital and Mama Lucy Kibaki, were suspended and others sacked for "demanding for their rights."
"The issues of Pumwani twins have never been adequately addressed, salaries and allowances have not been harmonised. These are the issues the nurses wanted addressed but are still pending despite a court order. Nairobi government has failed to even listen to the court ," he said.
County Secretary Robert Ayisi and Public Service Management executive Mercy Kamau denied the nurses have not been paid.
Meanwhile, Governor Evans Kidero has formed a nine-member team, led by the chairman of the county public service board Philip Kungu to probe the cases of deaths in the county hospitals which have largely been linked linked to medics' negligence.
Top in the probe list is the death of an 11-week-old Dominic Otieno who died at Mama Lucy Kibaki Hospital last Wednesday waiting for an ambulance for over fiver hours to take him to Kenyatta National Hospital for specialised treatment.