Government Admits Nairobi Hospitals are Overwhelmed by Covid-19 Patients

The Health Ministry has accepted hospitals in Nairobi have been overwhelmed by Covid-19 patients.

Health CS Mutahi Kagwe on Tuesday said most of the stretched facilities are those that offer intensive care.

“There are facilities that are overstretched especially those that relate to intensive care,” said Kagwe.

As a result, the government is set to open a new Covid-19 isolation facility at Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral, and Research Hospital in two weeks’ time.

The mega medical facility will have a capacity of 500 beds, including 50 ICU units, according to Kagwe.

The ministry is also encouraging asymptomatic Covid-19 patients to embrace home-based care to free up space for critical patients.

“The records we have show that persons in home-based care are turning negative faster than those in hospitals. Going forward, families should get interested in what home-based care is all about,” added Kagwe.

Kenya has witnessed a spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in the past three weeks with experts warning that the country is on the cusp of entering the infections peak.

On Tuesday, the ministry reported 606 new cases, 14 fatalities and 75 recoveries. The total number of infections now stands at 18,581, 299 deaths and 7,908 recoveries.