A major expansion programme to double the capacity of Kiambu District Hospital from the current 400-bed to 850 bed capacity has kicked off.
Speaking to the press on Thursday during a ceremony to hand over modern equipment donated to the hospital by Philips, hospital medical superintendent Dr David Kariuki said that this will be the first major renovation since the hospital was built in 1969.
Dr Kariuki said the hospital serves patients from both Kiambu and Nairobi counties.
The hospital is one of the largest public health institutions in the country and it is being renovated for the first time this year in an initiative by the county government in partnership with electronics maker Philips.
Dr Kariuki said that the hospital delivers about 30 babies daily. It recently launched a 50-bed paediatric ward is meant to cater for the increasing number of deliveries in the facility.
He added that they also received a donation of two radiography machines which will offer free ultra-sound scanning to expectant women in the hospital.
Kiambu County Health Executive Officer Dr Jonah Mwangi, who was at the event, lauded the company for the donations saying the county government is working to tame mother-and-children mortality rates which have recently increased in the area.