Govt Hires All Intern Doctors, Releases Ksh2.4 Billion

The government has announced that all intern doctors will be deployed on Thursday, April 4, with Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Felix Koskei instructing the eligible interns to collect their posting letters.

Koskei announced this in a statement late on Tuesday evening, April 2, offering a glimmer of hope that the ongoing strike by doctors and clinical officers that has paralysed service delivery across all public hospitals could be resolved this week.

"All eligible medical student interns are urged to collect their posting letters from the Ministry of Health's offices with effect from Thursday, 4th April, 2024," Koskei announced.

Furthermore, the government secured Ksh2.4 billion to facilitate the immediate deployment and posting of the 2023/24 cohort of medical student interns.

It also facilitated the Payment of Basic Salary Arrears accrued by the National Government/Entities arising from the 2017-2021 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

He added that the national government will also provide grants and scholarships for eligible postgraduate medical officers.

"Secured the requisite budgetary support in the amount of Ksh2.4 Billion to facilitate the immediate deployment and posting of the 2023/24 cohort of medical student interns in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC)," the statement added.

Koskei further asured that the Government at both tiers, State Agencies, and the institutional stakeholders supporting the efforts to resolve the current dispute and bring about a permanent end to the cycle of industrial action in the Health Sector remain committed to fostering constructive dialogue, addressing concerns, and ensuring the health and well-being of all Kenyans.

He went on to call for an end to the ongoing countrywide strike by the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) in compliance with a stay order by the Employment and Labour Relations Court (ELRC).

The strike, which has been raging on for the past three weeks, has seen clinical officers under the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) join, stating that all legal mechanisms were exhausted, leaving them with no option but to down their tools.

KUCO's concerted efforts, including a 21-day demand letter and 7 days subsequent reminders, the government's failure to engage, left the officers with no choice but to proceed with the strike.