The Mathari hospital is reported to be holding six times more the number of patients it is supposed to.
The hospital also lacks enough staff as there are only 483 staff members who help the 4,188 patients in the hospital. There is a big challenge as the hospital lacks drugs and doctors to deal with the patients.
Mathari is the only referral hospital in the country that deals with mental problem patients and at the same time serves as a rehabilitation centre for drug addicts in the country.
The hospital was constructed to hold up to 700 patients but it is currently holding over 4,000 patients. The hospital is said to be having only one female nurse taking care of the 147 potentially violent men.
Also the hospital is said to owe the Nairobi Water Company sh40 million for unpaid water bills as quoted by the hospital’s medical superintendent, Julius Ogatu.