Health unions urge dialogue on police violence as protests strain hospitals

KMPDU member sing solidarity song during a press briefing where they pointed out that police brutality & goon violence is affecting health service delivery. [Wilberforce Okwiri, standard]

Health unions have called for a national dialogue to address rising police violence during protests, warning that hospitals are overwhelmed by avoidable injuries.

Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) Secretary-General Davji Atellah on Friday, July 4, said the country was headed in the wrong direction as health workers faced violence and trauma during demonstrations.

“Where do we put the line between criminals and peaceful demonstrators? To the extent we are raising up against each other, that we look at our brothers in uniform like our enemy, the brothers in uniform look at any Kenyan like their enemy, to the extent of arresting someone and handing over to be killed, to the extent of shooting directly to kill, that we cannot restrain ourselves. That is what we say there is a mental health issue,” said Atellah.

Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) national chair Peterson Wachira noted that many health workers had been traumatised by violence during protests and by what they witness in hospitals.

“As we stand here a good number of our members are traumatised. Some have actually fallen victim to this culture of violence, mostly meted out by police and the goons. And also in the facilities, they are also traumatised by the things that we are seeing. That is why we are saying it is time for introspection, sobriety is needed and there needs to be a national conversation about the mental health of our people,” observed Wachira.

Atellah explained that hospitals often see a surge of patients after protests, saying many injuries could be avoided if police exercised restraint.

“Last week after the protest there were so many victims that were admitted in public facilities. There are so many injuries that otherwise can be protected,” noted Atellah.

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The unions, including KMPDU, KUCO, Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN), Kenya Health Professionals Society (KHPS), and Kenya Union of Nutritionists and Dieticians (KUND), praised Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale for engaging with workers on universal health coverage (UHC).

“We have had three ministers, two of them failed miserably and we have now one of them who is there has demonstrated some goodwill. We want leaders who are available to talk to their people and he has handled the issues of the UHC which has been there now since 2022,” explained Atellah.

However, the unions said the posting of 6,000 interns to hospitals was below the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendation of 100,000 health workers needed to balance staffing with patient needs.

“Despite these numbers that are being posted we still need more health care workers. Therefore, we need to look for everything possible as workers, as Kenyans, what ways are we going to support these health care workers,” said Atellah.