CS Nakhumicha gives three options in settling medical interns stalemate

By Peter Ochieng

Cabinet Secretary (CS) for health Susan Nakhumicha has put three options on the table, in a bid to resolve the thorny issue of medical interns.

Intern doctors have from the beginning of this week been camping at Afya House, the ministry's headquarters demanding for posting on permanent and pensionable terms.

In a statement on Wednesday, the CS said there are three ways out of the current stalemate, which appears to be getting out of hand with each passing day.

The options, the CS said are posting all the over 3,000 doctors at the recommended monthly rate of Sh70,000 proposed by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), using the funds allocated in the budget to post at least 552 interns on a monthly rate of Sh206,400 monthly as per the 2017 Collective Bargaining Rate (CBA), or having to await for the court's directive on the matter.

The proposal by SRC of a Sh70,000 monthly stipend for the interns was challenged in the Employment and Labour Relations Court.

The ruling will be delivered on September 26, 2024.

CS Nakhumicha urged doctors to report to their centres as her office and Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) officials seek for a long lasting solution.

"The above notwithstanding the Ministry recognizes the loss in time and highly recommends the interns across the cadres to report to their internship centres as communicated earlier pending the resolution of the package," she added.

Concerning those pushing for her resignation through hash tag Occupy MOH on X, the CS said some people are taking advantage of peaceful protests enshrined in the constitution to paint a picture of her percieved failure.

"It is regrettable that despite the open and candid discussions with the union officials and representatives of the interns, a few individuals are attempting to use the demonstrations and assembly as an opportunity to paint an image of inaction, neglect and incompetence against the Ministry of Health, hoping that this will propagate a feeling of hopelessness and incite chaos among the wider population," she said.

She assured Kenyans that the ongoing discussions will ultimately solve the stalemate.