•Kidney Patients who have had a transplant have to pay almost Sh36,000 per month for medication
Kidney specialists and patients in Mombasa are urging the government to ensure that NHIF covers post-transplant medication.
This is because the medication is expensive and most of the patients cannot afford to buy it.
Speaking during the marking of the World Kidney Day at Makadara grounds in Mombasa on Saturday, Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital Nephrologist Soud Mohamed said that the medication is usually important but quite expensive and many are suffering.
“When a transplant is done, there is medication that you are required to use which NHIF does not cover for them…the medicines can cost you Sh36,000 per month, so can everybody afford that? And that is the biggest challenge,” Mohamed said.
He said through an association they formed known as Kenya Renal Association, they are doing a follow up on the high cost of medication to see how such a challenge can be addressed.
The specialist said that the expensive medication has led to the statistics of those undergoing transplant to remain low.
“You will for example hear that Kenyatta Hospital is conducting 200 transplants but when you check out the list of the patients is more than that,” he said.
Mohamed said at CPGH there are 30 people starting dialysis every month.
He blamed people for not doing enough exercise therefore leading to the increase of such cases and other diseases such as blood pressure, diabetes and obesity.
“When you do a research here these days, people are not doing exercise in that when one wants to go somewhere, they would prefer taking a tuk tuk to go to their destinations,” he said.
Transplant survivor James Mwenja who had his kidney transplant in 2014, said patients should highly be considered saying that it becomes challenging for the patients to fend for their families.
He also urged for the NHIF insurance cover to insure these patients.
“We urge the government to come to our rescue at least NHIF should cover for the medication,” Mwenja said.
Mombasa County has 16 dialysis centers.