Health Services in the North Eastern region are set to be affected after it emerged that Cuban doctors have left the region following the recent abduction of their colleagues in Mandera County.
Cuban doctors working in Garissa and Wajir counties left for Nairobi over the weekend after the attack on Friday by suspected Al-Shabaab militants.
Garissa police boss Aaron Morasae confirmed that the medics left the two counties over safety concerns.
Morasae was quoted by Daily Nation saying the doctors posted in Garissa and Wajir left on Saturday morning and it was not clear when they will return to work.
“Cuban doctors posted in Garissa and Wajir Counties left for Nairobi after two of their colleagues were abducted,” he said.
Service delivery in Garissa and Wajir County will be affected following the decision to withdraw the Cuban doctors as hundreds travel long distances to access specialized care.
Other counties that have had their Cuban doctors withdrawn include Lamu and Tana River.
Mandera Governor Ali Roba condemned the Friday attack in Mandera town urging the government to pursue the attackers and to ensure the safety of the two medics.
During the attack, the militants who were armed killed the police officer who was escorting the doctors while his colleague was admitted at the hospital with injuries.
“While I believe that all efforts are been done by our government to pursue the attackers, we would like to appeal to them to do whatever it takes to save the lives of our Cuban Doctors and bring them back from captivity,” said Roba.