Through the years we have had many wonderful volunteers working for the cause.
Here you will find a selection of articles by our founder and other guest authors relating to patient centred care.
- Alice
- Dr Stephanie Onguka
- Tanya Kiseke
Alice
Hon. James Macharia Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Health, The PS Prof Sagor, the DMS Dr Francis Kimani all protocol observed……, Ladies and Gentlemen, Good Morning. Today marks a major milestone to the improvement of health care from the patient perspective. It is the culmination of over 4 years of shouting, pushing, talking and negotiating for the recognition of the health care consumer THE PATIENT as part and parcel of the health care system We have heard of hundreds of cases on negligence, malpractice even death of patients, we don’t want to blame this on anyone but ignorance. Morris Moses Foundation believes with the launch of the first patient rights charter and I dare say the first of its kind in Africa will go a long way to improve patient participation in the delivery health care, by demanding for quality compassionate health care from the government and other stakeholders, but also taking responsibility of healthcare delivery as a personal responsibility of each and every citizen of Kenya. I believe the Patient Rights Charter is not just a document but also a tool to monitor, to direct and hold accountable the government to the patients and potential patients which we all are. To the medical fraternity, this document is not meant to be a witch hunt tool, or to undermine your heavily invested skills and knowledge, but it is meant to empower both you and your client. Remember you bring 50% on to the table because of your knowledge and skills while the patient brings the other 50% in terms of body, mind and trust to you which completes the process of healthcare service delivery. We would also like to recognize other organizations that have joined the pursuit of patients justice, the cancer organization which has been instrumental in the writing of the cancer bill and policies therein, the Africa Regional Blood transfusion society Kenya for the fight towards safety in blood transfusion, the center for patients rights for putting the medical fraternity on their toes using litigation measures and the Kenya Consumer Association for ensuring affordable drugs and many other local NGO and International NGOs who have invested in patient safety by advocating and capacity building the health sector to improve service delivery .This document will go a long way in empowering the patient and improving our work with the different patient organization. As human rights are part of our day to day decision making, let the patient rights charter also be the base for decision making daily in health care sector.We therefore request the regulatory bodies for a speedy dissemination of the charter to all the 47 counties from Lamu to Nyanza, from Turkana to Nairobi and from Bungoma to Nakuru. Morris Moses Foundation is committed to disseminating the charter using through the various MMF mooted campaigns such as Silent no more,Boresha Afya and Patient Solidarity Day, which for your information ladies and gentlemen will be commemorated on 30th of October and we will be joined for the first time by 10 other African countries to make it regional,we hope you will join us too. Chinua Achebe said, “When the center is weak things fall apart”, and I say because the center which is the patient has been strengthened the healthcare system will change as the demand for quality compassionate health care will translate to improved health care which will bring about a better and positive patient experience Thank You and God Bless
Dr Stephanie Onguka
These days, a pregnant woman in Kenya may feel a different kind of labor pains when watching the news. In the past two weeks, we have witnessed the Bungoma Hospital debacle and closing of Pumwani Maternity Hospital on national news. In households across the country, people are voicing their frustrations at both health care access and quality concerns particularly related to maternity care. So one question remains- is it time, Kenya? I have had the pleasure of hearing the Director General Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat, Mugo Kibati, speak on several occasions. He acknowledges the challenge of getting people to envision that these changes—economic, social and political– are not only possible, but they are coming. I must admit, when my husband and I returned to Kenya in late 2011, our jaws dropped as we saw the underpasses and overpasses, tunnels and the new Nairobi-Thika Highway. If you had told us years ago that it was coming, we, like many Kenyans, would have said “we’ll believe it when we see it.” But isn’t that the challenge for us today? When it comes to high quality, patient-centered care– let’s say for maternity services given this week’s news’ headlines— is not the greatest challenge to first envision what health care delivery and services could look like? What it should look like? Imagine a hospital where all staff, from the security guard and housekeeping to nurses and physicians, smile and politely ask “How can I help you today?” When every patient’s and concerned family members’ questions are answered and concerns are addressed. When patients feel heard and understood, informed and engaged in decisions related to their care, and confident they couldn’t get better quality care anywhere else. This is an exciting time for Kenya. With the devolution of health care delivery to the county level, upheld by the social pillar of Kenya’s Vision 2030 on a national level, the stage is set for comprehensive reform of health care services. Our job as ordinary citizens is to envision, embrace and advocate for patient-centered care in public and private hospitals across Kenya and to settle for nothing less. The time is now! Dr. Stephanie Onguka is a Family Medicine consultant based in Nairobi, Kenya.
Tanya Kiseke
Patient Solidarity Day.
Patient Solidarity Day. December as everyone knows is a festive time of the year, rushed holiday shopping, goat eating plans, holiday at the Coast maybe….in short it is a happy time and people are more relaxed and carefree, but that is not the case for everyone, especially those in the hospital. Being in hospital in December can be one of the most trying times for a patient because even if they are visited frequently they cannot engage in the festivities. Patient solidarity day was began as a need to show the patients that people out there care about them and have them in mind whether they know them or not and also to promote patient centered health care. On December 10th 2011 Mrs Alice Mwongera the CEO of Morris Moses Foundation decided to honour the patients of Kenyatta National Hospital and Thika Level 5 hospital by visiting them and giving them words of encouragement, paying the bills for a few patients who were unable to clear their own bill, and thus came the birth of Patient Solidarity day. By 2013 this noble cause has caught on and is celebrated in 10 African countries. Patient solidarity day is usually celebrated on the 2nd Saturday of December, this time though we shall celebrate it on the 1st Saturday which is 7th December so that it can coincide with the 50th year celebration of our country which falls on the 12th of December, which happens to be on a Thursday, just four days later. The theme this year is PSD-K:Kenya @ 50 advocating for patient centered health care. This year we intend to visit Pumwani Maternity Hospital, Kenyatta National Hospital, Mbagathi Hospital, Thika Level 4 and Machakos Level 4. We are beginning an initiative dubbed “Adopt a patient”, this is where we get individuals to purchase an NHIF card for someone in hospital and have it activated that same day and they can use it as medical cover this will assist with the payment of bills. We will also be distributing medical resources to the different hospitals that we will be visiting. As the theme suggests we will be giving different pointers at the hospital on how to practice patient centered health care and encourage the staff at the hospital to practice it. We are so excited to be celebrating Patient Solidarity Day for the third time and we are working hard to ensure that it takes place and we are able to visit all the hospitals intended and make the day a success for the patients at the hospitals. This is an event worth participating in because you will get to change a person’s life be it directly or indirectly.
Asunta Galgaitele, we are proud of you.
Asunta Galgaitele, we are proud of you. As we see October come to a close we witness the end of the breast cancer awareness month. October is usually classified with the pink ribbons being worn and multiple free breast cancer screening tent are set up around areas in the country to help both men and women with early diagnosis of the killer disease. The cases of cancer in the country are on the rise. It was always thought to be a lifestyle disease, but this was because of misinformation and misconception because the rich were the ones who were most likely to seek treatment mainly because they could afford it. Many people in the country get diagnosed with cancer but after the diagnosis they are unable to do anything about it because they lack the money to treat the disease and they just go back home and wait to die. A couple of weeks ago a piece on KTN TV was featured on the news with the title Desert of Death, by Dennis Onsarigo you can watch this piece on the link provided http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obGCOLCMSfI. This very informative piece tells the story of the rising cases of cancer on the residents of Marsabit county. There have been 38 deaths reported that have been brought about by cancer in the area since the year 2009 and the numbers keep rising daily because of scattered reports of individuals diagnosed with cancer in the area. Residents of the area are not sure of what has caused the cancer in so many people but they are only left guessing as to what the cause could really be. Some tests have been carried out on the water and it was noted that their water from the boreholes had levels of harmful chemicals and it was deemed unfit for human consumption. Despite this knowledge they still drink and use the water because they have not been provided with another source of water that is not harmless.This feature was very sad because two individuals who were talked about during the piece had cancer and by the time it was been aired had already passed away, one was a three year old boy who had stomach cancer and the other was a lady who had mouth cancer. It is very well known that our country does not have the facilities, equipment and especially enough staff to deal with the rise of the silent killer disease in the country. We have 10 oncologists in Kenya. In this feature we come across a nurse, Asunta Galgaitele. She is the nurse at Kargi Dispensary in Marsabit. She has worked at that dispensary since 2003 and she can be described as the face of the dispensary. We at Morris Moses Foundation were greatly moved by her actions of sticking around in the dispensary for 10 years and assisting the patients of the area despite the lack of facilities in the area. She has been with the community regardless of the fact that all she can do is referring cancer patients to other hospitals. It is such individuals in the society who make such a big impact no matter how little they do but it is assured that she has helped many and touched the lives of many in Marsabit County. May the Lord bless her abundantly and give her the strength to continue changing people’s lives daily.