Medic calls for research on environment
THERE is need for extensive research on the effects of environment on the prevalence of diseases in all regions in the country, Rift Valley provincial director for medical services Benedict Osore has said. Speaking during the launch a the two-day Kenya Pharmaceutical Association, 9th Annual Scientific Conference in Nakuru, Osore said there is need to broaden knowledge on effects of the environment on development and existence of diseases.
This, he said, will not only facilitate the elimination of some of the communicable diseases, but will also enhance services of pharmaceutical practitioners. “Let us start looking at the effects of the environment on diseases. More research should be devoted to that. For example in Mukurweini in Central province, one of the reports indicates that there is high incidences of diabetes. Let's find out why,” he said.
Dr Osore, who represented director of medical services Francis Kimani, called for commitment from the pharmaceutical specialists in performing their duties. He said the Ministry of Medical Services is committed to improving their working conditions to motivate them. Meanwhile Dr Kimani, in his speech, said the ministry is in the process of reviewing the existing health laws in accordance with the spirit of the new constitution. “In line with the new constitutional dispensation, Kenyans expect to see changes in the way the government delivers health services. One way of doing this is to look at the existing heath laws and see how they can be reviewed and harmonised with the aspirations of the constitution,” he said.
Aware of the shortage of pharmaceutical technologists in public health centres, Kimani said the ministry is in the process of employing more. Of the 765 available positions in the country, only 391 have been taken up. He said they will deploy more staff to medical training institutions to ensure enough human resources. The conference, which ended on Saturday, attracted more than 4,000 pharmaceutical practitioners. This year’s theme of the workshop was, "Pharmaceutical Interventions in Environmental Linked Disorders.”