Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has announced that the government will set up a specialized police unit to enforce compliance in the medical sector.
Speaking on Sunday, January 18, CS Duale said the police unit will target quack doctors and unlicensed health facilities.
The Health CS noted that the police unit will also deal with cases of fraud under the Social Health Authority (SHA).
"If you are a quack doctor or healthcare practitioner who is not licensed and has not gone to school like the one who mishandled our patient, I am telling them, they better look for another place where they can do quack business, in the healthcare system, it is not going to work," Duale said.
He continued, "We will crack the whip; we are planning to form an anti-fraud police Unit to deal with even fraud in SHA.”
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CS Duale also announced that the Ministry of Health will introduce a new regulatory framework, known as the scope of practice, which will require medics to treat patients only within the areas they studied in school.
"As a ministry, we are introducing something called the scope of practice. The moment we launch it, every health practitioner will only treat patients based on what they studied in college,” Duale added.
This comes days after Amos Isoka passed away after developing complications following a botched tooth extraction by an unlicensed dentist in Kawangware.
Isoka died on Wednesday, January 15, while undergoing treatment at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH).
He spent over two weeks in critical condition due to extensive swelling that affected his neck, tongue, and chest, ultimately leading to fatal breathing complications.
Isoka had been admitted for a week and had already undergone two surgeries as doctors attempted to manage the life-threatening complications.
According to his wife, Vivian Nekesa, doctors had informed the family that Isoka required another major chest operation, which had been scheduled for early Thursday, but his condition worsened before the surgery could be performed.
"I was told Amos needed a chest operation. The doctor later informed me that his heartbeat worsened during the night and eventually stopped. They tried to assist him to breathe, but it did not work, and Amos passed away at around 3 am," she said.
