Patients at Baragoi sub county hospital now have access to specialised medical equipment which has reduced medical referrals.
The Hospital Medical Superintendent, Dr. Ezra Lekenit said the equipment distributed by the national government under the Management Equipment Services (MES) had transformed service delivery in the only hospital in Samburu North.
During a visit by the County Development Implementation Coordination Committee (CDICC), Lekenit confirmed that the hospital has received a caesarian section set, surgical sets, a modern X-ray machine, ultra sound machine and a central sterilisation machine which allows the doctor to perform minor surgical procedures.
Peter Leakono, a 57 year old resident of Baragoi town told KNA that free maternity services now have meaning after the hospital received an ultra sound machine.
He said that two of his wives have received specialised maternity services in the hospital unlike in the past when they were being referred to Nakuru or at Samburu county hospital in Maralal.
“We now get quality healthcare services right here in Baragoi without worrying about extra costs of transporting our loved ones to Nakuru county for specialised treatment.” He said.
The Medical Superintendent noted that despite many women seeking maternity services, there is still a large number that deliver at home due to long distances between home and hospital and migration in search of water and pasture.
Dr. Lekenit acknowledged that service delivery is hampered due to a number of challenges such poor staffing, noting that he is the only doctor in the facility.
“We do not have an aesthesis so we cannot perform surgeries that require one, we also don’t have theatre nurses and we use general nurses while performing minor surgical procedures,” he said.
Lekenit added that there is inadequate power supply to run all the machines in the hospital simultaneously.
Under the (MES, the national government has equipped two hospitals in each county with outsourced state of the art medical equipments to support devolution of equitable, accessible, affordable and quality healthcare.
By Robert Githu
