Union offiicials at a MTRH during a meeting at the hospital./MATHEWS NDANYI

More than 3,500 medics and other workers at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) have issued a one-week strike notice due to alleged non-remittance of over Sh3 billion in statutory deductions and the collapse of services at the hospital.

Workers’ unions, including KMPDU for doctors and the Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN), announced they would down tools from Tuesday next week to force the government to intervene in the situation.
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The hospital’s CEO, Dr Phillip Kirwa, said they were aware of the grievances raised by the workers and that a solution was being sought.
“We are in dialogue with the workers to resolve the issues they have raised so that services are not disrupted,” said Kirwa.
Beatrice Chelule from the nurses’ union said the hospital was on the verge of collapse and there was a need for urgent government intervention to save it.

“The patients are desperate, the workers are desperate, and we no longer have MTRH as a functioning hospital,” said Chelule.

She said patients were now going without the care they need because the hospital cannot afford essential requirements to operate effectively.

Union officials claimed the hospital had failed to remit over Sh2.5 billion for the pension scheme, in addition to other statutory deductions, bank loans, and financial obligations.

“Banks are on our necks, and we can no longer pretend to work yet we are equally frustrated and watch as our patients suffer,” said Chelule.

Dr Edwin Rono, who is the KMPDU branch secretary, said there would be a total shutdown of the hospital from Tuesday unless the government intervenes.

He said all dialogue attempts with the hospital management had failed, hence the move to call the strike.

“We are telling the president and anyone else who cares that we will shut down everything if our demands are not met,” said Dr Rono.

Dr Rono said they would no longer be available for dialogue because all previous meetings to address the grievances had failed.

He said the hospital management had informed them that there was no money to address their demands.

KUDHEIHA union official Japheth Keittany said the government had reduced the hospital budget by over 30 percent, leading to a financial crisis at the institution.

He said the hospital was facing an acute shortage of more than 1,000 nurses after many left for greener pastures.

“The staff we have are overwhelmed and can’t work effectively, yet the management says they have no money for replacements,” said Keittany.