Union warns excluding PHO interns may worsen Kenya’s public health staffing gaps

The Kenya Environmental Health and Public Health Practitioners Union (KEHPHPU) has warned that the exclusion of Public Health Officer (PHO) interns from deployment and compensation could weaken Kenya's healthcare system and worsen staffing shortages, as it demanded immediate intervention from the government.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the union argued that PHO interns play an essential role in frontline healthcare services and should not be sidelined in internship and deployment programmes.

The union said excluding the interns risked undermining disease prevention efforts and weakening critical public health systems at a time when the country continues to face healthcare challenges.

"PHO interns are not onlookers; they are deployed directly into public health facilities to perform core, essential preventive functions," the union said.

It added that the interns undertake disease prevention activities, environmental health surveillance, epidemic monitoring and community sanitation programmes, describing their work as "structural and highly necessary."

KEHPHPU also pointed to existing workforce shortages within Kenya's health sector, warning that continued exclusion of public health officer interns could discourage professionals from entering or remaining in the field.

"Kenya continues to battle dangerous and adverse health professional-to-population ratios. PHO interns represent critical human capital," the statement said.

The union argued that denying interns deployment opportunities and compensation would "destroy public health workforce attraction, force professionals to abandon the field, and weaken preventative health infrastructure during a global climate and international health crisis."

The organisation issued several demands to the Ministry of Health and the Public Service Commission, including immediate posting and placement of all eligible PHO interns under the Internship Policy of 2020.

It also called for the immediate issuance of establishment codes for PHO interns to facilitate streamlined posting and payment processes, alongside full allocation of internship stipend funding within the national health budget.

KEHPHPU further urged the Ministry of Health to end what it described as discrimination and unequal treatment of PHO interns and called for harmonised conditions for all healthcare professionals.

"The Ministry must stop all forms of marginalization, segregation, and selective non-payment of PHOIs," the union said.

The union warned that failure to act could trigger industrial action and legal proceedings.

"The public health workforce will not accept to be sidelined or starved," it said.

The union's statement comes days after the Ministry of Health announced the posting of 6,360 healthcare interns under the 2026/2027 internship programme, with deployments set to begin on July 1 across accredited health facilities nationwide. The internship cohort includes medical, dental, pharmacy, nursing and clinical officer interns.