KNH says it faces shortage of 400 nurses as staffing gaps strain services

Kenyatta National Hospital says it is operating under pressure due to a major shortage of nurses, with Acting Chief Executive Officer Richard Lesiyampe revealing that the facility is short of about 400 nurses, a gap that has affected service delivery at the country’s largest referral hospital as patient numbers continue to rise.

Speaking during an interview on NTV on Wednesday, Lesiyampe said the hospital has already written to the National Treasury seeking approval to recruit more staff, including at least 100 nurses to ease pressure in key departments, but the process has been slowed by funding challenges.

“We have a deficit of about 400 nurses, basically,” he said, noting that the shortage has forced the hospital to rely on temporary arrangements to keep services running.

He added that although permission to recruit had been granted, the hospital is still waiting on funding to move forward with the hiring process.

“We wrote to National Treasury and even got approvals to employ about another 100 nurses, unfortunately we are still pursuing how that can be done,” he said.

Lesiyampe said the shortage has been felt most in busy areas such as maternity and paediatrics, where patient demand often goes beyond what available staff can manage.

He explained that under normal conditions, the hospital handles about 40 deliveries in a day, but the number can rise sharply during pressure periods, especially when other facilities are affected by strikes.

“We sometimes have about 100 babies. That stretches our staff,” he said.

To manage the situation, the hospital has turned to short-term staffing measures, including hiring nurses on a locum basis to fill gaps during peak demand.

“I’ve gone ahead to have nurses on locum just to fill in this gap,” he said, adding that standby staff are also deployed when patient numbers rise and reduced when demand eases.

He also said part of the strain comes from how work is distributed within the hospital, noting that nurses are often forced to take up duties that are not directly related to patient care.

According to him, the hospital is now considering bringing in healthcare assistants to handle basic tasks so that nurses can focus more on clinical work.

“We want to bring in health assistants so that they can undertake some of those issues, and then the nurses actually deal with nursing duties,” he said.

Lesiyampe further pointed to weaknesses in the referral system, saying many patients go directly to Kenyatta National Hospital instead of starting treatment at lower-level facilities, which adds more pressure on the hospital’s limited staff and resources.

His remarks come after a nurses’ strike at the facility that began on Monday, which disrupted services and left patients stranded as workers protested unresolved issues, including unremitted statutory deductions and poor working conditions.

The strike, led by the Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives, affected hospital operations, with reports of patients waiting in wards and corridors as staffing levels dropped during the industrial action.

The strike was later called off after talks between hospital management and union officials, leading to a return-to-work agreement that addressed issues including pay, promotions, workload, and welfare concerns.

In a statement issued by the Ministry of Health on Tuesday, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale confirmed the end of the strike following discussions between the two sides.

“I am pleased to announce that the industrial action by nurses at Kenyatta National Hospital has been officially called off,” he said. “This follows hours of intensive and constructive negotiations between Hospital Management and the Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives.”