The Ministry of Health has announced plans to position the Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) as a center of excellence for producing health workers.
The PS State Department for Public Health and Standards Josephine Mburu said this will enable the country produce enough health workers to respond to the needs of the country and the global demand.
She acknowledged that KMTC's role as a centre of excellence for health worker training is a key component of the government's efforts to improve the country's healthcare system.
“The move is expected to help address the shortage of health workers and enhance the quality of healthcare services in the country,” she said.
The PS who toured the facility further disclosed that the government is considering decentralising the simulation labs to offer continuous professional development points on critical skills like advanced life support, advanced cardiac life support, and advanced trauma life support
She urged the college's management to entrench a culture of professionalism in training and explore the possibility of establishing a virtual campus to offer courses that do not require practicals.
KMTC launched the Sh14 million simulation laboratory in July 2018 to train health workers and is expected to help Kenya churn out critical care health workers needed in the fight against emerging diseases like the COVID-19 pandemic.
The laboratory includes a mock Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and operating theatre in which routine and complex clinical cases can be performed under the guidance of KMTC specialized trainers.
It is also fitted with a Comprehensive Care Ventilator (CCV) as well as Universal Anaesthesia Machine (UAM), several mannequins and an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) bed.
It also has patient monitors, oxygen cylinders and accessories, machines to simulate different types of breathing, airway kits, and other devices, accessories, and consumables that help simulate a real clinical environment.
