Machakos county government will institute a proper referral system for the entire region at the Machakos Level 5 Referral hospital by April 2019.
Speaking at the hospital Tuesday, while on a tour to assess the status of the Universal Health Care (UHC) piloting program, area governor Dr. Alfred Mutua said patients will only be served at the hospital upon referral from Level 4 or other lower health centres.
“As from April, patients ought to be first treated in other sub-county hospitals which will be upgraded to Level 5 hospital,” said Mutua.
The governor said this will help avoid overcrowding at the hospital and ensure quality control at the lower health centres, since most patients will be served closer to home.
Mutua lauded the UHC pilot program at the facility saying that no patient who has been enrolled to the program should be charged or referred to a private institution for any treatment.
“I am pleased that the Universal Health Coverage is working well. We have enough medicine, all teething problems are being handled swiftly and I am confident that this pilot program will be a true success. We are elated that many patients are coming from all over the country, as far as Nyahururu, Nairobi and Kajiado for health services in our County,” added Mutua.
He lauded the hospital for ensuring that patients had not shared a bed since 2013, urging the management to maintain the same status.
Mutua noted that without proper systems, the hospital’s performance will always remain below average despite its infrastructure, equipment and human resource capacity.
He further urged every hospital staff to understand their mandate and role and work towards the hospital’s ultimate success.
“I therefore direct the hospital management to sit and rectify some of issues that we have identified today, including poor paint work, uncollected trash and hygiene issues that can negatively affect performance of the entire hospital.
The governor was accompanied by his Deputy Engineer Francis Maliti, several members of county assembly among other government officials.
By Rachael Kilonzo
