A lobby group, Health Non-Governmental Organizations Network (HENNET) has urged the Kenyan government to put more funds on Primary Health Care (PHC).
The lobby said many Kenyans succumb to preventable and treatable diseases.
HENNET argues that PHC is not just the provision of first-contact personal health care services, or a set of priority health interventions for low-income populaces.
The lobby said PHC entails meeting citizen’s health needs throughout their lives; addressing the wider elements of health through multi-sectoral policy as well as action and empowering people, families, and societies to take control of their health.
HENNET CEO Dr Mercy Onsando called on the government to focus on preventive and promotive health than curative health.
She said the Kenyan government has allocated very little cash on preventive measures while curative measures get over 90% percent of the medical share revenue annually.
“PHC has vast number of benefits including improved quality of care, early management of health conditions, quality of primary care, reduced cost of health services and death cases,” she said.
Onsando called on the Government to enhance PHC structures and implement the policies and plans developed recently and address the health system gaps that were identified during the Universal Health Care (UHC) pilot project.
“The government should consider allocating 1% of its GPD and sustain this percentage as most of the PHC services in Kenya are funded by donors. We need the government to transit to domestic financing for PHC programs,” she said.
She added that Community Health Workers need to be motivated by increasing their stipend.
The stipend should be at least kshs 10,000 per month and should be standard in all the Counties-she said.
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