Have you seen the latest report on Kenya’s health workforce? The numbers are shocking!
Yes! The study says Kenya needs at least 70,000 more health workers to meet the country’s healthcare demands.
And it gets worse! The shortage is projected to grow to 114,000 by 2030 and 170,000 by 2035 if urgent action isn’t taken.
That’s a crisis. No wonder achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) seems like an uphill battle. Right now, there’s only one doctor for every 5,000 Kenyans.
Exactly! Even though Kenya produces 7,650 new health workers each year, hiring all of them would barely make a difference.
The report published in PLOS Global Public Health shows that while the workforce grows by 3.4% annually, the demand for healthcare is rising even faster—at 4.7%!
That’s because of the country’s growing population and changing disease patterns. More people need specialized care, but we don’t have enough doctors and nurses.
And to make things worse, budgetary restrictions are limiting hiring. Counties have vacant positions, but there’s no money to employ trained workers.
Yeah, and despite a 44% increase in the health sector wage bill between 2014 and 2019, the country still struggles to hire enough professionals.
Another major problem is health worker migration. Did you know Kenya signed a deal to send 30,000 nurses to the UK? That’s going to create an even bigger gap!
That’s concerning. And let’s not forget natural attrition—retirements and other factors remove 4% of health workers from the system each year.
The report warns that if the government doesn’t increase its health workforce budget by at least 10.5% annually, it won’t be able to fix this crisis.
: So by 2035, Kenya will need 476,278 health workers to achieve UHC, but projections show we’ll have only 304,351. That’s a huge shortfall!
The study recommends a different approach—health workforce planning should align training numbers with real needs and budget capacities.
And public-private partnerships must be strengthened. The country’s health workforce budget was $2.29 billion in 2021, but it needs to increase to at least $3.58 billion by 2030.
That’s a big ask, but it’s necessary. The right to health is enshrined in Kenya’s Constitution. Without enough doctors and nurses, that right remains just words on paper.
True! Expanding training, improving job opportunities, and increasing funding must be prioritized. Otherwise, UHC will remain a dream, not a reality.
Kenya has made progress, but without addressing the health workforce crisis, achieving UHC will be impossible. The time to act is now!
