The County government of Nakuru has fully adopted automated revenue collection technology in over 95 percent of public health facilities to enhance service delivery and accountability.
County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Health Ms. Jacqueline Osoro said revenue collected from public health facilities in the past four years had more than doubled from Sh.597 million in 2019 to Sh1.5 billion in the last Financial Year.
The money was collected from 19 hospitals from July 2022 to June 2023. The increase was attributed to the adoption of automated revenue collection technology.
Ms Osoro indicated that through the automated system, patients deposit bills for medical services through bank agents and M-Pesa and are issued with receipts.
When Gifton Mkaya, their County Executive Committee Member for Health, hosted the Taita Taveta Health Management Team at the Nakuru Teaching and Referral Hospital, the CECM spoke there. The team is in Nakuru to benchmark the devolved unit’s Healthcare Management and Service delivery best practices.
Ms Osoro stated that Governor Susan Kihika’s administration was consistently improving the health outcomes of residents by ring-fencing the user charges collected at all level 4 hospitals and the County Referral and Teaching Hospital to improve the quality of services.
“Automated revenue collection has limited handling of hard cash. Currently, we can trace several patients receiving services in any given hospital, and know which disease and services they have received,” the CECM noted.
Facilities, from where the money was collected, are the Rift Valley Provincial General Hospital (PGH), PGH Annex wing, Bahati Hospital, Naivasha, Gilgil, Molo, Olenguruone, Elburgon, Subukia, Njoro, Langalanga, Kabazi, Keringet, and Mirugi Kariuki.
Other hospitals are Bondeni Maternity located within Nakuru Town East and Mogotio Hospital in Rongai.
Osoro added “This modern form of transaction besides eliminating handling of hard cash, enables us to track the number of patients receiving medical services, the ailments afflicting them, and diagnosis and treatment made by health practitioners,”
She said the County’s Health Department had also put in place an efficient audit and accounting system that will track how the distributed drugs and supplies procured from the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (KEMSA) are used.
The CECM said that all public healthcare facilities in the devolved unit give monthly reports on how they collect revenue, which helps improve service delivery. The CECM also said that automated revenue collection technology records data and services provided, such as a review of hospital operations.
Through the system, hospital managers can monitor services and the flow of information.
Ms Osoro indicated that each staff stationed in a given hospital is accountable for services offered and the revenue collected is used to improve structures, procure medical equipment, and maintenance. She added that part of the money is also used to hire experts to treat patients suffering from life-threatening diseases.
“We can support our levels 2 and 3 hospitals with drugs and staffing. Our level 4 facilities are autonomous and the management is seamless and efficient,” she disclosed.
The CECM indicated that the issuance and receiving of drugs at the public health facilities in Nakuru will be done through the automated system to seal any kind of leakage.
“Putting in place an automated drug management system, which Governor Kihika’s administration is prioritizing, will enable us to monitor the drugs and seal all the loopholes that make it possible for individuals to smuggle out some of the drugs and take them to the private market,” she added.
Ms. Osoro revealed that the county has put elaborate measures in place to ensure that services in public hospitals are not disrupted and that Kenyans are receiving dignified healthcare services.
“No Kenyan seeking medical services in the county hospitals should be forced to buy drugs. We have taken measures to ensure quality of service in our hospitals,” stated the CECM.
Ms Osoro noted that the paper-based drug management model left room for a lot of tampering that could go unnoticed.
She said they were designing a system that would also enable them to track essential drug requirements, therefore enabling them to duly replenish stocks at specific health facilities where stocks have gone low.
To enhance the efficiency of services the CECM said the health department had operationalized the patient queue management system, ensuring a smoother patient flow throughout the hospital.
To fix the problems of not having enough space, data loss, and damaged documents, Ms. Osoro also said that the devolved unit would be automating its laboratory information and inventory management systems.
She said they were exploring a system whose key features would be workflow and data tracking, flexible architecture, data exchange interfaces, data mining, data analysis, and an electronic laboratory notebook (ELN).
She indicated that effective laboratory information and inventory management systems will facilitate easy record-keeping, tracking, and reporting thus eliminating the risks of human error and improving the overall turnaround time.
“We are envisaging a platform that will be a solution that works fast and facilitates seamless communication between scientists, businesses, laboratories, and the public. The system will greatly reduce the need for manual data input, mitigating the risk of human error. It will also alleviate bottlenecks and streamline workflows to significantly improve turnaround time,” said Ms Osoro.
She added that the County administration was working on several strategic partnerships to provide residents with convenient and subsidized access to medical consultations through telemedicine.
“Telemedicine, the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients by means of telecommunications technology has gradually become acceptable. With the new normal and preventive measures in place, telemedicine might be the antidote to patient care,” noted the CECM.
Mr Mkaya noted that to spur inclusive economic development, county governments should integrate technology into service delivery and growing economic activity.
The Taita Taveta Health CECM pointed out that with rapid advancements in the digital landscape, leveraging technology presents a golden opportunity for counties to foster efficiencies in service delivery, attract investments, boost own-source revenue mobilization and enhance the lives of their citizens.
“By implementing e-government services, counties have an opportunity to enhance efficiency in revenue collection, combat corruption, and ensure better allocation of resources. A user-friendly online platform can also encourage citizen engagement and foster trust in county governments, promoting a conducive environment for economic growth,” said Mr Mkaya.
By Anne Mwale
