Catholic Bishops urge striking medics not to use patients as bargaining chips » Capital News

NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 11 — The Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) has urged striking doctors to put the lives and interests of the patients first and refrain from using them as bargaining chips.

Catholic Bishops however urged the government to respond speedily to the issues raised by the doctors for the safety of patients in public hospitals.

The conference told news reporters on Thursday that both parties — medics and the government — need to find a settlement without putting the lives of patients at risk.

“Every life is worth than any financial or employment gain. Our health provision is in the hands of the medical fraternity, and we ask both parties to seek dialogue and settle the matter once and for all,” Archbishop Anthony Muheria of Nyeri said in remarks attributed to KCCB.

“We believe a mutual position can be reached quickly to end this unnecessary bleeding,” he added.

The bishops decried what they described as a deplorable situation evidenced by the misery of the sick everywhere.

They noted some patients had regrettably lost their lives while others had their health situation deteriorating because of the standoff.

KCCB noted the delayed disbursement of over Sh2 billion in insurance claims owed to Catholic-run hospitals by the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) only served to aggravate the situation.

Muheria noted that hospitals were struggling to pay staff and acquire medicines as a result of prolonged delays amid uncertainty over the transition to the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF).

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