Report reveals poor state of some Nakuru dispensaries

The Nakuru County Assembly committee on Health Services has painted a grim picture of the state of some of the health facilities in the county.

The latest report on the status of Chemaner and Taita dispensaries in Tinet Ward in Kuresoi South tabled in the assembly on Wednesday revealed a sorry state of the facilities.

The report tabled by the committee vice-chairman John Njenga indicates that the two facilities are in dire need of drugs, workers, equipment and infrastructure.

NO LAB TECHNICIAN

At Chemaner Dispensary, the committee established that it lacks a laboratory technician, forcing patients to travel to Molo or Olenguruone hospitals to access the services.

It also lacks an ambulance and staff houses, forcing workers to operate from outside the dispensary.

At the same time, the report revealed that the maternity wing, which is well equipped, is not operational due to lack of medical staff and drugs.

“Mothers prefer to give birth at home because they are not guaranteed to get a nurse to assist them in safe delivery,” said Tinet MCA David Malel.

KITCHEN

Many inpatients are also shying away from the facility as it lacks a vibrant kitchen unit.

The report further revealed that the casual workers had not been paid their dues for several months.

In their recommendations, the committee urged the county government to recruit four nurses, a clinical officer and a laboratory technician to improve service delivery.

The committee also wants the dispensary upgraded to a health centre and the county to set aside funds to build staff houses to enable health workers attend to emergency cases at night.

PAY VOLUNTEERS

The committee also wants the county government to pay volunteer community health workers a stipend of Sh2,000 per month for supplementing the work of health workers in the county’s hospitals.

At Taita Dispensary, the situation was no better as it had no incinerator and the workers were forced to dispose harmful medical waste in a pit latrine.

The security of the patients was also not guaranteed as the dispensary has a temporary perimeter wall that is porous as it is made of timber and barbed wire.

NO POWER SUPPLY

At the same time, the committee established that the dispensary lacks power supply and a refrigerator for storing vaccines.

Due to lack of refrigeration facilities, the dispensary is not providing immunization services while injections available are limited to antibiotics.

“There was also a shortage of drugs that treat typhoid and non-communicable diseases and the facility was also not conducting laboratory services due to lack of a laboratory technician,” reads the report.

But county Health Services Executive Kariuki Gichuki clarified that drugs for non-communicable diseases such cancers, diabetes and cardiovascular disorders are not stocked in level two facilities (dispensaries).

“These facility acts as a referral to level four and five hospitals and do not prescribe drugs for non-communicable diseases,” said Dr Kariuki.

He said that the county is planning to hire additional health workers and that the county public service board has started the recruitment process.