This archive report was first published on 7 June 2020.
Covid-19: Uhuru Orders Counties to Set Up 300-Bed Isolation Units ¶
President Uhuru Kenyatta has directed all counties to establish at least 300-bed isolation centers to combat the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the country.
During his eighth presidential address on the coronavirus pandemic at State House, Nairobi, on Saturday, President Kenyatta emphasized the need for counties to be well-prepared to handle the surge in cases.
He allocated Sh5 billion to the counties to increase their healthcare capacity, specifically to build the necessary infrastructure to cope with the pandemic.
President Kenyatta noted that some counties were ill-prepared, citing Siaya County's 10-bed isolation facility, which was fully occupied, and Busia County's 34-bed isolation facility, which was also full by last Thursday.
He warned that if there was a surge in infections in these two counties, their healthcare systems would be overwhelmed, and urged the counties to move with speed to establish at least 300 beds.
President Kenyatta also called an extraordinary meeting with all the governors on Wednesday to develop time-bound protocols for the progressive reopening of the economy within the coming 14 days.
He emphasized that it was now up to the county governments to use the funds to safeguard the lives of Kenyans by ensuring that health facilities were well-equipped and that healthcare workers were adequately catered for.
As of Sunday, the country had recorded 2,767 cases of Covid-19, with 752 recoveries and 84 deaths.
Prof Omu Anzala, a microbiologist and researcher at the University of Nairobi's Kenya Aids Vaccine Initiative Institute of Clinical Research, projected that when the country hits its peak in February next year, 10 counties will require the highest number of intensive care unit beds.
These counties include Murang'a, Kericho, Marsabit, Lamu, Nairobi, Kakamega, Samburu, Mombasa, Homa Bay, and Kisumu.
Kenya faces substantial gaps in ICU bed and ventilator capacity, with only 22 out of the 47 counties having at least one ICU unit.
Only three hospitals have managed some critically ill Covid-19 patients who needed mechanical ventilators, and there are 245 functional ventilators across 110 public and private hospitals in the country, but 123 of these are currently being used on other patients.
