Dr Kizzie Shako: Kenya's first female police surgeon

Kizzie is a mother, sister, daughter and human rights defender, better known as Dr Kizzie Shako, Kenya’s first female police surgeon, a title otherwise known as a forensic physician.

She is now in private practice as a consultant to various organizations where she has contributed to the capacity building of police officers, prosecutors and medical personnel on forensic principles.

Previously, she worked as a senior medical officer in the Ministry of Health, Forensic and Pathology Services, seconded to the National Police Service as a police surgeon based at the Police Surgery. She talks to CHEBET BIRIR about her career journey.

Who is Kizzie Shako?

I graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery from the University of Nairobi’s College of Health Sciences. I then went on to pursue other courses in forensics: Forensic Anthropology, Disaster Victim Identification and Clinical Forensic Medicine. I also completed a Master in Forensic Medicine (MFM) from Monash University. I recently received a Commander of Peace Award from the United Nations International Peace and Governance Council. Lastly, I’m 42 years old and have two children.

How is a typical day at work for you?

My work involves gathering information and evidence from those injured through violent crimes. Many times, I have to deal with cases of sexual violence against children and intimate partner violence.

Tell us about how you started your career.

I began working as an A&E doctor at Kenyatta National Hospital in 2010. The same year, I became a senior medical officer at the Ministry of Health, Division of Forensic and Pathology Services. I would work under the direct supervision of the Chief government pathologist, Johansen Oduor. In this role, I gained a lot of skills in performing autopsies, printing court evidence, advising on crime scene management, specimen collection, and exhumations. 

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I also learned a lot about disaster victim identification and worked with victims of the Westgate and Garissa University College terrorist attacks, as well as Sinai fire victims. I was primarily involved in handling and analysing the evidence.

How many cases of gender-based violence did you handle in a day? 

When I started, I saw about 120 cases a day where people had been injured in motor vehicle collisions, occupational incidents like falling off a building, and sometimes, people whose fingers had been chopped off while operating a machine. Some people are bitten by animals. I have seen a lot of weird things.

Do you have moments of despair from the interaction with victims and dead bodies? 

When I was working with the police, my mental and physical well-being were compromised and I didn’t realise it until a therapist approached me and told me, “You know you are too young for this job and it can affect your mental health. Do you need to talk to someone?” This was when I realised that my job had affected me badly. I was not able to interact with my own family properly. I would leave work and go away from my family. I was not myself for a while until I agreed to go through therapy. 

You are more involved in helping victims of Gender-based violence cases now. What inspired you to delve into this field?

In 2012, I became a police surgeon at the Ministry of Health- National Police Service. In this role, I saw various victims of domestic violence and helped in the filing of P3 forms. It was the first time I was working with the living rather than the dead. I would examine documents about injury cases resulting from physical assault, sexual assault, domestic violence, terrorist attacks, and child abuse, among others. I was also involved in the collection of data on sexual violence and collaborated with SGBV networks to donate clinical supplies to enhance the quality of forensic services. Most of the sexual offences were on children, who had been defiled by both relatives and non-relatives. Eighty per cent of the time, it’s a relative to the father, mother’s boyfriend, or stepfather. And so I began to ask myself. How can I help these women and children?

Tell us more about the Vunja Kimya Foundation.

The organization aims to teach society about basic risk factors that lead to violence, the driving forces and dynamics behind child abuse, sexual violence, and intimate partner violence. We also help victims of gender-based violence to deal with the trauma and heal. We also want to start a program on self-defence. If all children would go through self-defence training and I do believe this can be done, we would avoid a lot of abuse on them. So, we want to teach children about how to identify an abusive person before they attack. You know, there will be no need for a physical fight if you’re able to read the environment. We also teach people how to manage their emotions and how to walk away before it gets bad.

What are some of the challenges you have faced in your career path?

Like in many professions, the world of forensics is not without bias when it comes to dealing with women.  There’s lots of discrimination, especially when you appear to be young or a mother. In the office, people don’t care that you are a mother. You sort out your issues at home, you come and you work. It’s an understandable expectation, but sometimes it’s a bit unrealistic because a mother’s priority is her children. Women are also thought to be lesser employees, being designated with jobs like taking minutes during meetings and serving tea. This happened to me. But I learned from a certain mentor recently that if it will get you favour, then just do it. You’ll grow slowly and people will begin to see the value you bring to the table.

How did you manage to succeed in your career despite the challenges?

You have to be confident. The thing with this is you will now be called arrogant, but it’s okay. Don’t think about what people say.  A mentor is also important; they will help you navigate the different aspects of the corporate world. Find someone who can be your compass and guide through the corporate world in terms of how you communicate with men and with women. Also, how you present yourself is important; you have to dress, speak and behave a certain way if you want to be taken seriously.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to be in your profession?

Get out of your comfort zone and push boundaries. You have to go above and beyond what is required. Finding your purpose will give you a sense of peace and fulfilment. At the end of the day, what you must have is a clear understanding of your purpose.