Some 174 new coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Kenya today, pushing the national infections tally to 103,188.
In a statement to newsrooms on Tuesday, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe (pictured) said the positive tests were from a sample size of 2,848, recording a positivity rate of 6.1 per cent.
The cumulative tests conducted now stand at 1,246,279.
From the new cases reported 159 are Kenyans and 15 are foreigners. They comprise 92 men and 82 women, the youngest being a one-year-old child and the oldest aged 79.
Two more patients died of Covid in the last 24 hours, pushing the national fatality tally to 1,797.
This comes as 86 patients recovered from the disease; 65 from the home-based care and isolation programme and 21 from various health facilities. The national recoveries now stand at 85,336.
According to the Health CS, 258 patients are admitted in various hospitals across the country while 1,190 are on the home-based care and isolation programme.
Thirty-seven patients are in ICU, out of which 15 are on ventilatory support.
This comes as the Ministry of Health said it will not hire additional health care professionals to spearhead the planned coronavirus vaccination programme.
Instead, the government is planning to redistribute health employees to bridge the gap.
This is according to the ministry’s National Covid-19 Deployment and Vaccination Plan, 2021.
“No additional human resources will need to be hired, besides the technical advisers at central levels,” states the draft.
In the draft plan that the Saturday Standard has a copy, the ministry admits to shortage of health professionals.
“There is disparity in health workforce distribution across counties, which is influenced by demographics, number of health care facilities and epidemiological profile of individual counties,” it says.
However, the ministry will spend Sh175.8 million on training and capacity building of health care providers.
The training, according to the ministry, will help in strengthening their knowledge on Covid-19 disease and skills in safe vaccine administration.
Further, the medics will be trained on social mobilisation, communication and waste management.
A budget of Sh295.6 million has also been allocated for advocacy, communication and community mobilisation initiative.
High-profile individuals at both county and national governments will participate in launch of the vaccination programme.
The ministry believes there will be minimal resistance in adoption of Covid-19 vaccines.
The vaccine will be rolled out in three phases, according to the ministry.
