Nyong'o, CEO Ndegwa commission mother and child hospital in Kisumu

Kisumu County hopes to minimize cases of maternal child mortalities following the establishment of a Maternal Child Care Health Centre.

The Sh16 million facility launched in Ratta, Seme Sub-county is aimed at increasing bed capacity for daily deliveries to boost maternity services.

Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong'o noted that the mother and baby unit is an ultra-modern facility that will offer exclusive services to mothers and their babies.

Nyong’o said it will help them mitigate against the high infant mortality rate in these areas.  

“The maternal unit will provide a variety of critical services including outpatient, maternity care, comprehensive clinics and early childhood immunizations,” said Prof Nyong’o.

He added that they are looking forward to opening such wellness centres in all the wards in our eight Sub-Counties.

The facility is an initiative by the Mpesa Foundation aiming to boost maternal health care service delivery in Kisumu and Siaya Counties.

This comes even as the county has strived to transform maternal-child healthcare in two years.

According to the latest statistics from the Health Department, Kisumu has managed to reduce maternal mortality by 30 per cent from 495 to 343 per 100,000 live births.

In an earlier interview, Health CEC Gregory Ganda noted that maternal mortalities have decreased by 30 per cent due to increased skilled deliveries.

He added that child mortality has also reduced from 54 to 39 per 100,000 live births.

"The mortality rate among the under-fives has reduced from 79 to 63 deaths per 1,000 live births."

The MCH unit is equipped with a nurse station, a waiting bay with a children’s play area, 2 consultants’ rooms, a child welfare clinic (CWC) room, a pharmacy with a store, a family planning room, an antenatal clinic (ANC) room and washrooms among others. 

Additionally, 100 tree seedlings were planted within the compound.

The maternal unit will also provide a variety of critical services such as outpatient care, maternity care, comprehensive clinic care, immunisations for children, and laboratory services where over 10,000 people will be impacted.

Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa noted that their purpose is transforming lives, and through these interventions, they are taking healthcare closer to the people.  

"Going forward, M-PESA Foundation will continue partnering with the counties to enhance service delivery, with a keen focus on maternal and child health,” he said.

Earlier during the groundbreaking ceremony of the center in September 2023, Governor Nyong’o had indicated that the unit will also take care of teenage mothers and children.  

He said this was expected to end cases of stigma among teenage mothers with the children being taken care of while their mothers resume education.

"The hospital will protect the young mothers from harsh judgment by society. We know stigma has in one way or another contributed to school dropouts," he said adding he will continue to support the young mothers achieve their dreams.

In Siaya, the Safaricom Foundation will on Saturday hold a medical camp in partnership with Zuri Health, Checkups Medical Hub, and Lions Sight First Eye Hospital.

This, Ndegwa said, will be the 13th free medical camp since last year.

The foundation has invested Sh 4.2 million towards the camp, which aims to benefit more than 3,000 residents with various medical services.

The foundation will also distribute Mama Packs to mothers at Siaya County Referral Hospital to enhance maternal and child health.

The CEO said the foundation will continue partnering with the counties to enhance service delivery, with a keen focus on maternal and child health.

“At Safaricom, our purpose is transforming lives, and through these interventions, we are taking healthcare closer to the people,” Ndegwa said.

Locals will benefit from eye care consultations, breast and cervical cancer screening, and fistula screening services.

Others are general doctor consultations, diabetes screening, hypertension monitoring, and the elderly and child health consultations.

Zuri Health will provide technology solutions by offering patients free follow-up consultations with doctors via SMS and WhatsApp for up to six months.