BY SHADRACK NYAKOE
Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana on Wednesday launched a children’s theatre at the County referral Hospital.
The theater was launched in partnership in with Global Charities Smile Train and Kids Operating Room (KidsOR).
Kibwana said the facility is expected to increase surgical operations and reduce the number of referrals to Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi.
The facility is worth shs 30 million.
“Through strategic partnerships, the County referral hospital is able to provide the most vulnerable and deserving families with the best of care. Closer to their doorsteps. The Pediatric theatre is a strong case for public- private partnerships in action.” Kibwana said.
Global Charities Smile Train Program Director for East Africa Jane Ngige Muturi said Makueni County has been very supportive with the growth of their outreach programs for cleft.
She said the Hospital has acted as a referral center for neighboring counties to receive free quality cleft treatment.
Kids OR Director, Rosemary Mugwe said the theatre has been fitted with modern equipment suited for children.
Research, done by KidsOR, shows that 87 percent of children who cannot access surgical care live in low- and middle-income Countries.
In 33 African countries, there is a critical shortage of health workers.
Makueni County Referral Hospital (Mother &Child Wing) was opened in 2018 with four operating theatres, two of which are dedicated to obstetrics and gynecology while the other two used for general surgery and other specialties.
The Pediatric ward in Makueni is expected to benefit the County’s population of 1 million.
The long-term collaboration of Kids OR and Smile Train will result in more than 30 pediatric operating rooms provided across Countries in Africa over the next five years, treating more than 12,000 children.
The Smile Train-KidsOR partnership is also supporting a Pediatric Surgery Scholarship for the training and education of 40 pediatric surgeons across Africa.
This is in partnership with the West African College of Surgeons (WACS) and the College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa (COSECSA).
