A lonely patient at the far end of Ward One at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching (JOOTRH). Most patients have been discharged from the hospital owing to the ongoing nurses’ industrial action. [Photo: Courtesy]
The Kisumu County Health Chief Officer, Dr Ojwang’ Lusi, has criticised the media for what he termed as "blowing out of proportion the ongoing nurse’s strike".
The medic wants journalists to conduct thorough investigations and confirm their information with relevant authorities before releasing it to the public.
Speaking at his office, Wednesday, Dr Lusi said that published reports that more than 19 patients national-wide had died owing to the medics’ industrial action, was not true.
“It was not true that such a big number of patients died in our hospitals as some patients passed on as soon as they arrived back home for lack of professional care and not in the hospitals as claimed," he said.
Lusi however indicated that most public hospitals in Kisumu were discharging their patients and cutting on admissions due to lack of the nurses manpower.
He confided that Kisumu County Hospital and Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching (JOOTRH) and Referral Hospital which have been hit hard by the strike, were surviving on nurse interns.
The interns are from Kenya Medical Training Collages and Maseno Univerty who are currently offering basic services in bid to contain the situation.