Ante-natal care coverage improved from 48 to 51 per cent between February and May this year alone, a Health Ministry report shows.
Immunisation coverage also improved from 63 to 78 per cent.
Health Cabinet Secretary Sicily Kariuki, who spoke in Nairobi on Thursday during the inauguration of the Nursing Council of Kenya and the Nutritionists and Dietitians Institute, said the rate of HIV pregnant mothers on ARVs increased from 83 to 95 per cent.
Pregnant HIV positive women can transmit the virus to their babies during pregnancy, childbirth and during breastfeeding.
The World Health Organisation had in 2009 recommended that antiretroviral drugs be started earlier in pregnancies to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
Updated guidelines included two options, both of which should start earlier in pregnancy, at 14 weeks or as soon as possible thereafter.
Kenya’s guidelines on the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV/Aids emphasise early initiation of HIV prophylaxis, starting as early as at 14 weeks of pregnancy or earlier depending on the viral load of the mother.
According to Kariuki, the number of infants exposed to HIV has dropped from eight per cent in 2013 to 3.7 per cent in 2017, translating to 4,000 new HIV infections averted in infants born to HIV-positive mothers.
“In addition, TB cases notification has increased from 46,723 to 80,531 within the same period,” she said.
The nursing council and the institute are mandated to develop and implement effective policies and regulations in the nursing, midwifery, nutrition and dietetics professions.
The CS appreciated the role played by nurses and midwives in ensuring that rural communities have access to primary healthcare.
“In Kenya, we have a total of 60,579 registered nurses and midwives. Despite the sub-optimal nurse to patient ratio of 15 nurses per 100 000 people, 80 per cent of care in rural facilities is conducted by nurses and midwives.”
They are the frontline healthcare workers handling issues of emergency care and overall management of patients.
Nurses and midwives comprise the largest segment of the health workforce worldwide.
