COUNTY HEALTH CARE DEVELOPMENT

Overview of KUCA's Health Care Program

Embedded in the KUCA health care program is a series of incentives and policy recommendations aimed at improving healthcare provision. Some of the key recommendations include:

• Provide coverage for all counties without exclusion under the policy of “Leaving No One Behind.”
• Employ and initiate payment for community health workers to form part of the Primary Health Care system.
• Prioritize employment of 20,000 healthcare workers—doctors, nurses, clinical officers, laboratory technologists, physiotherapists, among others—to bridge the gap according to WHO recommendations of 23 HC per 10,000 populations.
• Set up an emergency medical treatment fund to cater for emergencies, cancer treatment, and referrals.

Key Initiatives for Better Health Care

• Establish a commission for the management of human resources for health without undermining devolution.
• Set aside Sh50 billion for the Kenya Association of Retired Officers' medical schemes.
• Harmonize terms of employment for all healthcare workers in the spirit of equal work for equal pay.
• Integrate preventive and promotive services and establish MDT (a primary healthcare approach) as envisioned in KUCA’s Afya Bora plan.
• Set aside a seed deposit amount of Sh5 billion into co-funding strategic programs for HIV, tuberculosis, blood transfusion, malaria, family planning, and reproductive health.
• Ring-fence funds for healthcare from facility improvement funds to allocations from the Treasury in collaboration with county governments.

Reducing Costs and Improving Efficiency

To ensure affordable and accessible healthcare for all Kenyans, KUCA will:

• Bring down the cost of treatment, including drugs, consultation, laboratory services, and imaging services.
• Build up the supply chain management system (KEMSA) to ensure efficiency and accountability in medical supplies to all health facilities.
• Integrate Information Communication and Technology systems to enhance telemedicine and health management information systems.
• Operationalize a National Health Information System for Electronic Health Records (EHR) to standardize and ensure the portability of patient data.