KMTC students in a class. KMTC is set to open a new campus in Garissa. [Photo/barakafm.org]
The Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) is set to open a new campus in Garissa County as it moves to boost the number of health workers in public hospitals.
KMTC CEO Peter Tum said the government’s Equalisation Fund will provide resources towards the establishment of additional health centers to boost the number of student admissions.
“Through this, we have been able to establish campuses in Isiolo, Mandera, Lamu, Mtwapa, Taita-Taveta, and Hola. We now want to expand to Garissa,” he said.
The healthcare workers shortage has been a major cause for concern for the government given the steady increase in population.
Mr. Tum said the move to open more campuses in counties is in a bid to improve access to healthcare services among Kenyans by having more trained healthcare workers.
He further said that training of students from the host county will empower the counties because personnel trained at the devolved units are able to comfortably work under their unique conditions.
“Take, for instance, those trained in Laikipia and Mandera. It would be easier for them to be absorbed within their local zones because they better understand the in-country challenges and can fit well there, rather than posting personnel from other regions,” said the CEO.
The World Bank has sponsored the training of 800 enrolled community health nurses from marginalized communities in far-flung areas to help the country to cope with the healthcare challenge in human resources for health (HRH).