Women in Kenyan health facilities endure widespread mistreatment, according to a KELIN report on obstetric violence.
Many face non-consensual procedures such as forced caesarean sections and sterilisation—even when medically unnecessary.
Chronic shortages of staff, essential supplies, water, electricity, and beds leave women delivering in overcrowded wards—sometimes on floors—and carrying their own water into hospitals.
Facilities often lack privacy, and a poor care culture enables informal payments and disregard for patients’ dignity.
The report argues these abuses violate women’s rights and underscores the urgent need for a rights-based health care system in Kenya.
