• Workers tell MPs their salaries are being delayed as allowances remain unpaid
• Medical and food suppliers stop deliveries
Image: MONICAH MWANGI
Staff at Kenyatta National Hospital yesterday told MPs their salaries are delayed and allowances unpaid as a financial crisis also takes its toll on patients.
Hospital operations are in peril, putting the lives of thousands of patients at risk, staff say. Hundreds of patients already are being turned away as the financial crisis threatens to get out of control.
The hospital is facing a cash and management crisis partly because the National Hospital Insurance Fund has failed to pay aboutSh800 million it owes the hospitals.
In January, KNH laid off five doctors and a number of casual workers because of the financial strain. It plans to hire nurses on contract instead of full-time employment.
“We will also engage management to end to this problem,” Sabina Chege, the parliamentary Health committee chair, told the staff during a closed three-hour meeting.
The meeting addressed increasing financial and management problems at the facility. Acting CEO Dr Irene Inwani recently pleaded with the staff to be patient following delayed February salaries.
“This is to confirm that all staff shall be paid their salaries by March 7, 2019. You are therefore urged to exercise patience as you await the payment,” she said.
Senior staff saying it was unclear who was acting CEO, Dr Irene Inwani or Dr Thomas Mutie.
Some medical and food suppliers have stopped supplying the hospital because of debts, some dating back to October last year.
Recently, the hospital management blamed the NHIF for the Sh800 million debt, while the Prisons Department owes close to Sh200 million.
Some patients said they were being asked to buy drugs from private chemists yet they had valid NHIF cards. Last month, the hospital confirmed it had stopped hiring medics on a temporary basis (popularly referred to as locums) and let go five accident and emergency doctors.
Dr Mutie said the emergency wing has 29 doctors round the clock, and the remaining 24 will now work on a full-time basis.“The human resources management department is looking into the matter,” he said.
KNH has about 2,400 inpatients and sees 2,500 outpatients daily.