On Wednesday, November 21, 2018, the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board said it was introducing new digital tools to help the public confirm whether a doctor is licensed and to curb the spread of quack practitioners.
KMPDB chief executive Daniel Yumbwa said the board planned to launch an SMS code next month through Health cabinet secretary Sicily Kariuki. He said the service would allow Kenyans to send a doctor’s name to 20547 and receive details on the practitioner’s qualifications.
The board is also developing a barcode system for doctors. According to Yumbwa, the barcode will let users scan and retrieve a doctor’s details, making it easier to identify impostors.
Yumbwa told the Nairobi County Assembly Health Services committee that the barcode would become operational in January the following year. He had been summoned to explain the growing number of illegal clinics in the capital.
During the same session, Nairobi County Public Health Department said the city had 2,315 private clinics, with at least 800 of them — 34 percent — operating illegally.
Yumbwa also said an application called I-Care was in testing and would help identify health facilities across the country. He said the app would show a facility’s location, the doctor in charge and the services offered.
He added that the tool could also help families and emergency responders trace where accident victims had been taken.
At the same time, Yumbwa blamed weak laws and light punishments for the persistence of illegal clinics. He said the Kenya and Medical Practitioners Act provides for a Sh20,000 fine and a maximum jail term of six months, which he described as too lenient to deter quacks.
