44,000 families registered under the universal health care program

Over 44,000 families have been registered under the universal health care program in Isiolo County, deputy director of curative and rehabilitation services Dr. Adan Al-amin said on Thursday.
Speaking during a one day workshop for public health officers from the area, Dr. Al-amin said that 85 per cent of local residents who reside in settlement centres had registered but only about 40 per cent of the people who lead nomadic lifestyle have been accessed.
He said there are plans to capture the remainder of the population adding those near Isiolo town would be listed in collaboration with National Hospital Insurance Funds (NHIF)’s personnel.
The medical boss said registration is still open and urged locals to register at the nearest health facilities and appealed to them to collect their UHC cards at their registration centres of their choice.
Dr. Al-amin said that 13,500 cards are still at various registration centres and appealed to local community health workers and Nyumba-Kumi chairmen to inform the locals to collect them.
He said the County Referral Hospital provides the best health services having specialized personnel in various fields attending to the patients.
On open defecation free, he said that 97 per cent of 23 villages which have so far adopted the pit latrines initiative have had cases of diarrhea and cholera eliminated in the area in the recent years.
The medic said that the county will soon celebrate open defecation free zone and urged herders to stop relieving themselves in the bushes since the same waste would be taken to rivers and wells during the rainy season which is a health risk.
By Abduba Mamo