Do you remember Nairobi Governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko storming Pumwani Hospital not less than once? His latest incident that saw him recover 12 infant bodies raised eyebrows, later emerging that the hospital didn’t have a morgue!
A report indicates that the facility has finally been equipped with a cold room and extra delivery wards.
Acting Health county executive Charles Kerich confirmed this on Thursday.
Kerich said the hospital will now have at least 100 beds in the two new wards to ease congestion.
Speaking when he appeared before the assembly Health committee on Wednesday, Kerich said the county government converted a medicine storage room into a ward as they could not afford a new building.
Nairobi governor Mike Sonko on Wednesday said his administration was finalising rehabilitation of the hospital to ensure the facility offers quality maternal care.
Kerich told the committee that apart from the fully equipped cold room, the facility also has a new oxygen plant and a modern surgical unit for deliveries.
“Last month we put in efforts to refurbish the hospital to accomodate an extra ward. Hopefully by latest December 25, 2018, the two newly restored wards would have been opened,” Kerich said.
He also said the county also made changes in personnel at the hospital.
“The hospital has a new medical superintendent, Dr Leonard Okoko. After evaluation, we have acknowledged the need for some changes in the hospital’s management,” Kerich said.
In September, Sonko discovered 12 bodies of infants stuffed in boxes during an impromptu visit.
The governor said he was briefed that an unknown person had switched off a generator serving the maternity wing resulting in the fatalities.
The situation reportedly crippled operations at the central sterile services department.
The hospital’s managers admitted that Pumwani lacked cooling facilities to preserve bodies.
As a result, the governor suspended the hospital’s superintendent Catherine Mutinda, the obstetrician gynaecologist Dr James Kamau and administrator Zadock Angahya.
The entire board of the facility was also dissolved hours after Sonko unearthed an attempt to cover up the deaths.
Sonko later signed a deal with Aga Khan University and Nairobi West hospitals to transform Pumwani by providing doctors, nurses, and hospital support staff for a period of two years at no cost.
He also unveiled the county’s plan to construct a 450-bed capacity wing at the hospital.
The proposed 10-storey facility will comprise a pediatric ICU, an adult ICU, and a high dependency unit.
Sonko said the hospital will offer surgeries, procedures, deliveries, immunization, beds, with 24-hour emergency services and high-end diagnostic services. There will be four theatre wards, a postnatal ward, a newborn unit with 100 incubators and 20 neonatal HDU with 30 procedure rooms.
Do you think with all the scandals the hospital has been recording it will be able to conduct all these services Sonko has listed?