Before the dust settles following revelations that 60 babies died at the Kiambu Level Five Hospital within a period of two months, it has now emerged that the facility has a shortage of incubators.  

Share news tips with us here at Hivisasa

Up to three infants are said to be sharing an incubator at the facility, an indication that the hospital is also grappling with congestion.

Although the facility is considered one of the best as far as public hospitals are concerned, patients have very little to smile about following the report of the deaths.

The Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board (KMPDB) has already launched investigations into the deaths after confirmation by County Health Executive Mary Kamau.   

Reports indicate that the facility has eight incubators at its intensive-care nursery, which means that an average of 16 premature babies are taken care of at a time.  

The situation is also the same in the nursery unit where three babies are put in one incubator after they are confirmed to be out of danger. 

According to Dr Grace Aketch, head of the paediatric unit, the hospital only has a capacity to handle 40 babies at a time but it has been congested to the point that 66 premature babies are being taken care of at any specific time. 

Dr Aketch also noted that the number of mothers travelling to the facility to treatment is quite high, which makes it hard for the medical practitioners to offer quality service. 

“We receive babies that are 28 weeks old, with an average weight of a kilogramme. Such cases are complicated,” said Dr Aketch, as quoted by Daily Nation.

This is not the first time the hospital is making headlines for the wrong reasons. Seven months ago, the facility was grappling with a breakdown of different equipment and congestion, to the extent of two patients being forced to share one bed.