Acute shortage of doctors worrying

By  Awadh Babo

Lamu County

Most Lamu residents do not have access to quality health services with a worrying trend of one doctor per 36,000 patients, a report shows.

The survey from the Ministry of Medical Services further indicates that the county lacks trained medical personnel. “The ratio of doctors to the population stands at one doctor per 36,000 people,” reads part of the report.

Lamu County, much of which is an archipelago, is one of Kenya’s remotest regions with a population of 100,100 according to the 2008 census. It has four health centres, a sub-district hospital at Mpeketoni and a district hospital on Lamu Island.

REQUIREMENT

The serious shortage of medical doctors in the county is way below the ratio of one doctor to 600 (1:600) patients set by the World Health Organisation as the minimum requirement that should be observed the world over, the report further reveals.

The study blames the scarcity on historical factors as well as inability by the Government to finance medical facilities across the country. It also says the tribes or communities in Lamu have also not been able to train local people in the health professions due to deplorable education standards.

Due to these endemic factors, most health workers in the county are not from the area and they opt to leave the area after a short time, protesting what they consider harsh working conditions without replacement.

BASIC COMMODITY

“Most of the hospitals and health centres in Lamu also lack basic facilities, staff, equipment and even water, which should have been a basic commodity in any medical healthcare facility,” says part of the report that recommends joint action by the county and national governments to reverse negative trends.

The report further says there is lack of pre-natal care for pregnant mothers whom sometimes succumb to treatable ailments.

The survey suggests that it is imperative that in the medium to long term, there is need to explore the feasibility of upgrading two or more facilities to address the healthcare delivery gaps.