Cases are increasing and beds in hospital isolation units are becoming scarce, the Covid-19 affair in Kenya is getting serious, the country has reached the highest number of active cases ever recorded, 14,018.
The Ministry of Health has already received eloquent statements from Nairobi Hospital and Aga Khan Hospital on this issue, and the Kenya Medical Pharmacists and Dentists Council (KMDPC) has also taken a position, stating that President Kenyatta's diktat to the counties that should have 300 beds each by the end of July has not been respected by many counties.
There are currently only 18,443 isolation beds available for coronavirus patients, when it was thought to have reached 30,500. This is while every day contagions increase dramatically, although many patients are sent home after the last negative swab. Yesterday, 455 people were discharged, 112 of them from hospitals and the others from home care.
According to the KMDCP, the number of beds in the intensive care unit is not sufficient. The number recommended by the Ministry of Health is between five and six per cent of the total number of isolation beds, which should bring the figure to about 1,000. As far as beds in specific wards are concerned, about 13,272 beds are in hospitals and the rest are in non-healthcare facilities.
On the other hand, the Director of Healthcare Operations Patrick Amoth, in his optimism about the adaptation of the facilities, is taking it out on his fellow citizens.
"The problem is that the second wave is with us and yet the country has taken a bad turn. Most people are not adhering to the measures. Maybe we will get serious when we see people dying on the streets.
Yesterday another 947 cases of Covid-19 positivity in Kenya, the Ministry of Health announced that the data is derived from 6,862 swabs analysed in the last 24 hours.
Percentages are increasing again and the attention threshold is very high.
At the same time, 12 patients succumbed to the disease, bringing the number of deaths to 896.