Family pleads with gov’t to end doctors’ strike after son’s kidney transplant is postponed

A family in Embu East Sub County is calling on the government to reach a consensus with the striking doctors after their son’s kidney transplant was postponed following the ongoing doctors’ strike.

Alex Kimathi, a 20-year-old first-year student at Embu University, had been diagnosed with a kidney problem two months ago at Kenyatta National Hospital.

His search for treatment has not been a smooth ride following the ongoing doctors’ strike that has caused the interruption of medical services at public hospitals.

His family had already looked for a kidney donor, but the kidney transplant that was scheduled for this month has not yet been initiated.

Speaking to Citizen Digital, Kenneth Kinyua, Kimanthi’s father, said he has been left bankrupt after weeks of seeking alternative medical attention from private hospitals.

“I had paid my son’s school fees quite early. The little I was left with has been depleted as a result of the bills that come with seeking treatment from private hospitals. I have no plan B, the government should solve this problem,” he lamented.

Kinyua pleaded with the government and striking doctors to reach an agreement that would end the ongoing strike, further pleading for help from well wishers to assist in raising the Ksh1.3 million required for their son’s Kidney transplant in a private hospital.

The doctors downed their tools on December 5th demanding the full implementation of a collective bargaining agreement signed in 2014 that awarded them a 300 per cent salary hike, a move that has seen health sector in the country crippled.

Written by Lucy Akinyi