Govt Cancels Internships For Over 300 Nurses

The Ministry of Health has cancelled internship placements for 306 pre-interns after uncovering irregularities in the Nursing Internship Placement for the 2025/2026 cycle.

In a statement released by Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, the ministry revealed that further discrepancies were discovered in the original list, following an earlier revelation in July that 42 interns had been improperly included.

"Following a review of the 2,098 pre-interns posted on 1st July 2025, the Ministry has established that 306 individuals were not qualified for internship posting, as they had not yet graduated," stated Duale in part.

"The posting offers for these 306 BSc Nurses have been revoked, in addition to the 42 offers previously revoked on 21st July 2025. All affected internship centres have been duly notified."

The Ministry of Health has released details on the institutions affected by the revocation of internship offers, with Kenyatta University recording the highest number of cancellations at 22. Over a dozen tertiary institutions across the country had students who were irregularly granted internship placements.

Following the findings, the internship offers of 306 pre-interns were withdrawn, and all affected internship centres were formally notified to prevent disruptions in the deployment process.

This development comes shortly after the suspension of Lister Onsongo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nursing Council of Kenya (NCK), over alleged violations tied to the illegal placements.

Further scrutiny by the ministry revealed that an additional 316 qualified pre-interns were wrongly excluded from the initial allocation list. These individuals, having met all eligibility requirements, will now be issued internship offer letters.

The ministry directed them to collect their letters in person at Afya House on Friday, August 1, with a valid national ID required for issuance. “Note that the offer letters will only be issued upon presentation of a valid National Identity Card,” Duale added in the update. 

The scandal first came to light on July 10, when Health CS Aden Duale flagged 19 students who had not completed their studies but had somehow received internship posting letters.

He announced that an audit would be launched, warning that any individuals or institutions involved in the irregularities would be held accountable.

Medical internships are highly sought-after in Kenya, with intern doctors earning a basic salary of Ksh46,120. Including allowances under CSG 9/Job Group L, their total monthly pay can rise to Ksh208,000 depending on the posting location.

Doctors during a past strike in Kenya. /QUARTZ