Vihiga has started upgrading at least one health facility in all its five constituencies to a subcounty hospital in a bid to decongest Mbale Referral Hospital.
Governor Wilber Ottichilo on Wednesday said the decongestion plan is to enable the referral hospital to be used for teaching.
"I'm in the process to decongest that referral hospital because I want to be used as a teaching facility. I'm engaging Masinde Muliro University and Maseno University to start using the hospital as a teaching center once it becomes decongested,” Ottichilo said.
He spoke in Sabatia where he addressed 350 newly recruited health workers.
He said the Mbale hospital will only handle referral cases.
Hospitals being upgraded include Emuhaya (Luanda), Emusire (Emuhaya), Sabatia (Sabatia) and Hamisi in Hamisi subcounty.
The county government was still in talks with stakeholders from Vihiga subcounty to decide which hospital is to be upgraded, Ottichilo said.
"Devolving services from Mbale to the subcounties will boost healthcare with more people able to access services," Ottichilo said.
He said the county government had built more than 50 health facilities since inception in 2013 and promised they will all be equipped.
The governor said there was need to hire more workers for improved services in the hospitals.
Health chief officer Arnold Mamadi said the new workers will be deployed across all hospitals. He urged the county to hire more workers.
“The patients are our clients and we ought to treat them the way you would wish someone else treats you,” Mamadi said.
Ottichilo said health was still a major challenge with a majority of residents not able to access proper healthcare.
“Primary health is the most important one to deal with and if we deal with it properly, then the county will spend less on clinical health," Ottichilo said.
He said a health county will enable people to create self-employment opportunities to generate income.
Ottichilo urged the recruits to work as a team for the county to achieve its dream.
“Let us take this as a calling so that we deliver.”
Ottichilo said the county will soon set up a blood transfusion centre and an intensive care unit at the Mbale Referral Hospital.
Edited by p. Obuya
