Global Heatlh 101 Healthcare System in Kenya

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Country Paper (Kenya)

The purpose of the paper is to develop a conceptual framework for studying, analyzing and comparing national health care systems. This will help to sensitize students to some of the historical, geographical, legal, cultural, political, and socio-economic factors that influence health behavior, as well as provide a comparative understanding of the main features of the nation's health system and services. In this analysis and evaluation of another nation's services and systems, the student should be able to examine and transfer models and experiences from one country to another.

The framework for comparing health care services and systems is as follows:

  1. Political/Government and Geographic Structure
  2. Demographic Structure and Health Status
  3. Organized Structure of the Health Care System
  4. Financing of Health Care
  5. Health Workforce
  6. Health Systems Needs and Challenges
  7. Management Implications

The paper should discuss specific characteristics of your chosen nation's services and systems.

Concept Paper

The purpose of this paper is for the student to identify a particular area of interest and research, analyze, and review it. In doing this, students will be able to contextualize the factors that influence health behavior through analysis and evaluation of a topic of their choosing. In addition to that, students will identify the disruptive innovations that have impacted this particular topic and changed healthcare delivery.

The framework for the specific topic paper is as follows:

  1. Introduction/ Background Information
  2. Importance
  3. Issues/ Financing of Healthcare
  4. How does this relate to global health and what are the disruptive innovations that have impacted this topic?
  5. Health System Needs and Challenges
  6. Management Implications

You can talk about the following on the paper

health policy issues, ethical concerns and issues, indicators of health, system components and structure, workforce composition and needs, health care reforms, health care priorities, mortality and morbidity, financing issues, future directions, management problems and issues, technology, public vs. private systems, access to care, cost of care, quality of care, and other important items.

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Explanation & Answer

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Running head: THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM OF KENYA

The Healthcare System of Kenya
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

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THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM OF KENYA

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The Healthcare System of Kenya
Introduction
Kenya health care system is different from other systems across the globe but related to
the healthcare of most developing countries. It has a political and geographic structure that
promotes devolution of the health where each region has the mandate over its health care. The
health care structure is organized into the county and national levels. It is financed through the
government organized Medicare NHIF, private insurance and out of pocket. However, NHIF is
widely used. The country health workforce is the greatest challenge as there is a shortage of
medical personnel, especially in remote regions. The nation also has the difficulties of
accessibility and the quality of health care. There is a need for change in governance to promote
effective devolution of the government, reduce the staff deficit and promote universal coverage.
The field is also faced with ethical issues that make provision of quality and universal care
impossible. Additionally, private hospitals in this country are more efficient than the public
hospital. However, it has five health priorities to improve state health. This paper discussed the
specific characteristics of the Kenya health care system.
Political and Geographical Structure
The Kenyan government and the geographic structure support the health care system that
aims to improve the health of the citizens. It consists of three arms of government. Bienen (2015)
explains that the first one is the executive arm which is headed by the president. It also includes
the deputy president who is second after the commander-in-chief; the two are elected during the
election. The other members of the executive are the cabinet secretaries; there is CS for every
sector in the country including health. They are appointed with the president and are tasked with

THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM OF KENYA

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the responsibility of overseeing their departments. The Attorney General and director of public
prosecution are the other individuals in the executive.
The second arm is the judiciary, and it is headed with the chief justice. Bienen (2015)
elaborates that it comprises of the Supreme Court, the court of appeal, the high court, and the
magistrate and subordinate courts that serve the people at the county level. The final section of
the government is the legislative which consists of members of the parliament who are the
representatives of their constituents. They decide the allocation of funds to nation and counties
In addition to the three arms, the political structure of this country has the Senate, part of the
devolved government. Bienen (2015) suggests that the Senate has the interest of the counties at
heart. They approval counties' bills determine funds allocation and represent their interest at the
national level. There are forty-seven senators in Kenya. This is because the country is divided
into forty-seven counties. It has a diverse geographic structure. It has a coastline around the
Indian Ocean. It also has a large rift valley in the western and central regions. Each county has a
governor who in charge of the area. He/she is a member of the devolved government at the
county level. Bienen (2015) asserts that the governor appoints ministers for various sectors in
the county such as health. The county devolved government likewise has members of the
assembly and the speaker. They ensure the needs and interests of the people at the local level are
fulfilled. It is evident that division of the country into 47 counties and the government
arrangement promote the health needs of the people at the grass root level that could have
otherwise been ignored. Moreover, the executive arm run by the president provides for the health
need of the nation as a whole and support good health in the country.
Demographic Structure and Health Status

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A significant number of the Kenyan population has health problems or are at high risk of
acquiring illnesses. Kenya has a large population; the approximate inhabitants of the country in
2019 is 51, 733, 712 people. Beguy and Ezeh (2015) suggest that it is the 47th largest country in
the world. The life expectancy is good as it improved since 2006. In 2006, it was 48.9 years
which rose to 59 years in 2016 and 69 years in 2018. Kenya as well has a high birth and
mortality rate of infants. Besides the large population, it has multiple ethnic groups. 17 % of the
Kenya population is the Kikuyu, 14% Luo, and 13 percent, the Kalenjin. Beguy and Ezeh (2015)
elaborate that the Kamba hold 10% of 51, 733, 712 people while the Kisii holds 6% and the
Meru 4%. The others are other Africans and Non-African holding 13% and 1% respectively.
HIV/ AIDS are prevalent in the LUO community. As for the country as a whole, 4.8% of the
adult have AIDs with a death rate of 28,000 per day
The highest population in Kenya is the female; they are 50.30% while the males are 49.
70%. HIV/AIDs is predominant among the females compared to the males. The pervasiveness of
the illness in females is 6.7 %, and males are 3.5%. Furthermore, life expectancy in women is
more compared to men. In 2016, the females' average age of living was 69 years while the males
was 64.7 years. Notably, Malaria and TB are among the top health problems in Kenya as 8.62%
of death is as a result of tuberculosis. The other leading causes of mortality in the country are
diarrhea-related diseases and HIV/Aids. 18.5% and 15. 56% of the deaths are attributed to the
conditions mentioned above.
Organized Structure of the Health Care System
Kenya health care system is organized into various levels. The bottom is the dispensaries;
they are government supervised health facilities which are run with registered nurses. McCollum
and Taegtmeyer (2018) illustrate that he dispensaries provide simple outpatient services like

THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM OF KENYA

treating common flu. It falls under the county level. There are also private clinics. Those in the
local community are headed with nurses. Nevertheless, there are clinics run by doctors and are
mostly in urban areas. After the clinics, the next health facility at the county level is the health
center. The clinical officers are in charge of the health centers. These centers primarily provide
preventive care such as child vaccination. McCollum and Taegtmeyer (2018) explain that they
have multiple medical staffs such as nurses, nutritionists, and pharmacists. The sub-district
hospitals at the county level are more extensive than the health centers. They offer surgical
services and have medical officers.
Furthermore, at the county level, there is the nurse home that performs similar roles to
district hospitals. McCollum and Taegtmeyer (2018) indicate that they are private institutions
and are owned with non-governmental agencies or individual people. They are known to offer
better services than the district hospitals. The other facility at this level is the Sub-county
hospitals. They are referral centers for the other smaller medical units and are managed with
medical administrators. They provide a wide range of medical treatment and surgical services.
The top medical institution at the county level is county hospitals. Each county has a
hospital where complicated cases from district hospitals are referred to. They perform complex
medical services such as intensive care and life support. County hospitals likewise offer
specialized care; they have specialists. After the county level, there is the national level which
contains national hospitals. In Kenya, there are three national hospitals. McCollum and
Taegtmeyer (2018) point out that they include Kenyatta Hospital, Moi Teaching, and Referral
Hospital, and Nation Spinal Injury Hospital. They handle health problems referred from the
county hospitals
Financing of Health Care

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THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM OF KENYA

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The health care of the country is funded with multiple sources. The primary source is the
Medicare organized and managed by the government. According to Munge and Chuma (2018),
the National Health Insurance Fund is an insur...


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