CS Nakhumicha Threatens To Fire Striking Doctors

Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Susan Nakhumicha has revealed that she is ready to fire and replace doctors who fail to return to duty amidst the ongoing doctors' strike.

Speaking on Wednesday night, March 20 during an interview with KTN News, Nakhumicha referred to the Employment and Labour Relations Court (ELRC) which placed a stay order on plans by the Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) to stage a strike, hours before the strike took effect after midnight on Thursday, March 14.

“They have been ordered by the court to suspend the strike. Choices have consequences,” she teased.

The CS feared that the longer the strike goes, the bigger of a crisis this could manifest in terms of normal healthcare delivery to the rest of the country, citing critical areas that need specialized attention.

“Places have to be manned, there is an ICU…someone has to take care of the patients. There is an emergency, someone has to take care of the patients.

"I cannot sit and say ‘since the doctors are on strike then we sit’, no…even those doctors are human beings. (They can get sick) and they will need people to take care of them," she added, in response to putting other doctors in hospitals on shifts while their counterparts proceeded on strike.

Terming it a place of rational thinking, Nakhumicha remarked on the negotiations taking place between the doctors and the Ministry of Health as well as the Head of Public Service which was enforced by the courts and is set to take place on Thursday, March 21.

This is as doctors at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) and the Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral, and Research Hospital (KUTRRH) became the latest to join in the strike.

"If you are not on duty, and you are supposed to be on duty, we have got someone else to do the job. Surely, what do you expect?" she posed.

Paying Interns

Regarding the payment of interns, the CS clarified on the aspect of their remuneration, stating that remuneration is given to an employee who has offered service on behalf of an employer.

According to her, interns are supposed to perform their duties under the supervision of specialists or expert medical officers.

"In this case, we are not supposed to speak about remuneration as these are still students. For us to sort this issue permanently, we need to address the staffing of human resources in health facilities," she stated.

She further stated that she had written to the National Treasury regarding the remuneration of interns, only for the Treasury to suggest unpaid internships owing to a deficit in resources.

"If we had resources, the situation would be different. We considered what internship looks like in neighbouring counties, we have to walk in a manner we can manage," she added.

Health CS, Susan Nakhumicha during an interview with KTN News on March 20, 2024. /MINISTRY OF HEALTH