Kakamega County government will hire 500 nurses alongside other health professionals before the end of this year, Governor Wycliffe Oparamya has said.
The governor spoke on Thursday when he officially launched a two-day National Nurses of Kenya Association ICU conference at a Kakamega Hotel.
He said the Kakamega County Government has prioritised health matters in line with the county manifesto and that 35 per cent of its budget is dedicated to the health sector.
He said Kakamega was the largest rural county with a population of over two million people who require good healthcare.
“Due to the growing population, we have expanded our hospitals, we have over 168 health facilities in this county operational to serve the people, but sometimes we get disappointed when we disagree about money and people have to go on strike yet there are better ways of sorting out the issues,” he said.
Oparanya, who is also the council of governors chairman, said the Constitution, through the chapter on Bill of Rights, puts a heavy responsibility on the health sector to ensure that the right to health is realised.
The county boss urged nurses to take their profession seriously saying nursing is a calling and so they should not always look at the salary.
“Nursing is a very difficult profession, but it is a calling and a service. You don’t look at money because this is a service to God and when God says go and serve you do so without looking at what you get afterward,” Oparanya said.
