The Public healthcare system in Kenya is faced with a myriad of problems, that have left many at the mercy of the private sector which is making a fortune out of them. Motivated by an insatiable appetite for quick money, most medical practitioners in these healthcare systems have devised mischevious ways to pry on poor Kenyans.
In a viral thread seen by Urbwise, KOT have exposed the rot going on in most hospitals, detailing their harrowing experience when they went seeking treatment in these facilities. “Thread on how private hospitals discuss your healthcare, like a commodity. Part expose, part commentary, part rant,” begins the lengthy conversation on Twitter.
A screenshot from a WhatsApp group of the staff of a renowned hospital reveals a plan hatched to delay discharging patients so as to hit a target set by the CEO and COO.
First on the chopping board is Nairobi Women’s hospital. These screenshots are from a Whatsapp group for the Nakuru branch staff, and they read, someone said earlier today, like the hospital is a trading floor.
1. Lock discharges. pic.twitter.com/vaHVQAre6P
— M. (@Owaahh) January 21, 2020
In this group, numbers dominate the conversation as the grandmasters keep tabs on the staff. Targets are highlighted, statuses updated and figures posted. Few who fault the plan get scolded. Revenues must be achieved by all means and everyone must be a team player.
6. In this one, the CEO and COO are hounding someone (presumably a doctor called Victoria) about why she discharged more patients than planned. pic.twitter.com/aMeNYJ5gbS
— M. (@Owaahh) January 21, 2020
Apart from delaying discharges and revoking others, they resort to admitting patients unnecessarily and sending them to the lab for tests that will squeeze money out of the pockets of walk-in patients without reciprocating quality services to them. One woman complained in a Facebook group of how every time she takes her daughter to Nairobi women, the doctor demands she be admitted without second thoughts.
8. The CEO, in this one, is telling his team to hit these daily revenue targets. They do this by admitting you when you don’t need to be admitted, sending you to the lab when it’s not necessary, and other hacks that ultimately cost you money and do not improve your health. pic.twitter.com/oRgVP7IjTn
— M. (@Owaahh) January 21, 2020
The thread attracted lots of reactions from victims who shared their experiences with other healthcare providers in Kenya, bringing to light the issue of Health Insurances and how almost insignificant they in the private sectors.
With no guiding principles (and with the health ministry complicit, and politicians obsessed with the new positions on offer), this greed became an obvious exploitation of the middle class, who it was thought would not want to be seen at a public hospital. pic.twitter.com/tT3VR6JM4k
— M. (@Owaahh) January 21, 2020
Health is key among President Uhuru’s Big 4 Agenda, but how long before the government cleans off the rot in the healthcare system at large?
