Trouble as Nyeri nurses down tools

Services in the health sector in Nyeri were paralyzed Monday after nurses and other public health workers downed tools over pay delays.

The strike affected services at the outpatient and inpatient departments of all hospitals including Nyeri County Referral hospital.

According to Agnes Wanjiru, a relative to a patient who was admitted at Nyeri County Referral hospital, patients who seemed to be in a critical condition were forced to seek medical redress in the nearby private hospitals and outside the county.

Four county ambulances could be seen ferrying patients who had no relatives to private hospitals in Nyeri.

A spot check at Consolata Mission Hospital in Mathari showed that a large number of patients were being transferred to the facility which has a bed capacity of 167

The Consolata hospital Administrator Bernard Muriithi said that by Monday noon, the hospital had already admitted 155 referrals from different health institutions and more were expected.