Nursing Council CEO suspended over irregular placement of interns

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has suspended Nursing Council of Kenya CEO Dr. Lister Onsongo over irregular placement of 42 BSc Nursing Interns.

Onsongo’s suspension comes after the Health Ministry uncovered a breach of regulations involving the Nursing Council and 10 Public and Private Universities which unlawfully submitted 42 interns for internship before their completion of their academic programmes.

The Health CS named Ann Mukuna to take over in an acting capacity.

“In line with this, the Ministry has suspended Dr. Lister Onsongo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nursing Council of Kenya, pending the outcome of a comprehensive internal audit of the full cohort of 2098 BSc Nursing interns. Consequently, I have appointed Ms. Ann Mukuna, Director Standards and Compliance to take over the operations of the Council until further notice,” said CS Duale.

Consequently, CS Duale added that the Ministry has also revoked the internship letters issued to the 42 students with immediate effect.

“this matter is being treated with the utmost urgency to safeguard professional standarsds, ensure compliance with statutory requirements and protect the rights of nursing graduates and the public,” he added.