Iten County Referral Hospital gets Sh.61 million oxygen plant

Iten Friday,

October  Friday 6, 2023

KNA by Alice Wanjiru/Anthony Kimutai

 Elgeyo Marakwet County Government has commissioned a Sh61 million medical equipment project which includes a 3,000 litres oxygen bulk tank at the Iten County Referral Hospital (ICRH) funded by Global Fund through Amref Kenya.

The equipment also comprised of 300 oxygen cylinders which Governor Mr. Wisley Rotich said will be distributed to all health facilities in the county with each facility getting two cylinders.

The governor said the installation of an oxygen generation plant at the hospital earlier in the year will help in refilling the cylinders, saying a facility will be sending a cylinder for refill as it continues using the remaining one to ensure that there is a constant supply of oxygen.

Speaking at the ICRH, the Governor said the undertaking marked a significant milestone in the delivery of healthcare services in the county, saying since independence, the county has never had an oxygen plant and has been sourcing its oxygen from outside sometimes as far as Kisumu.

He added that patients suffering from respiratory complications were being forced to seek services from the neighboring county of Uasin Gishu with many patients losing their lives before they access treatment.

“From now on, all patients with respiratory complications at the ICRH will be getting the oxygen from their wards as we have done piping for all the wards apart from the mother and baby ward which is still under construction,” he said.

Rotich called on all residents to ensure they register with NHIF to enable them to access services, saying the card will be enough to foot the bills in all public facilities within the county.

The Governor added that the ICRH is in the process of opening an amenity ward to cater to civil servants who have comprehensive cover with NHIF saying most of them have been seeking health services from other counties due to the lack of a private facility at the hospital.

“Teachers, police officers and other government officers have been seeking services from other counties because we do not have an amenity thus losing revenue which would assist us in getting funds to improve our health sector,” Rotich said.

He added that the county had doubled its allocation for drugs thus ensuring that there is adequate supply of drugs.

Ms Rose Gitau a bio-medical engineer from the Ministry of Health called on the county to train staff who will be in charge of the oxygen plant. The function was also attended by Peter Waiganjo from Amref.

Courtesy; KNA