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• Thu Apr 17 2025

Health services in Trans Nzoia county might soon face disruption after nurses threatened to go on strike

The Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN) national secretary general, Seth Panyako, issued a seven-day ultimatum to the county to address their grievances

Panyako noted that most of the Trans Nzoia nurses are battling serious mental health issues due to poor working conditions

The Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN) has threatened to call for industrial action in Trans Nzoia county.

Nurses union national secretary general Seth Panyako listed several demands he wants Trans Nzoia county to address in seven days. Photos: Emanuel Tarus, George Natembeya (Facebook).

Source: Original

The unions? national secretary general, Seth Panyako, on Wednesday, April 16, issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Governor George Natembeya-led administration to address the nurses' issues to avert the strike.

Trans Nzoia nurses' demands

Speaking at Kanyarkwat village in West Pokot county, Panyako claimed that the county government of Trans Nzoia was not remitting his members' statutory deductions to the relevant government authorities.

He lamented that many of the Trans Nzoia nurses have since been blacklisted by banking institutions for defaulting to pay their loans.

"These nurses are battling serious mental health issues because the county has not remitted their loan deductions to various banks. This is one of the issues my good friend Governor Natembeya should address as a matter of urgency," said the nurses? union boss.

Panyako further said it was an irony that the nurses cannot access the same services they offer to the people due to a lack of medical insurance coverage.

Delayed release of appointment letters to nurses who were interviewed by the Trans Nzoia County Public Service Board early in the year is also another issue the union want addressed.

"This delay means that critical health services continue to suffer due to severe staff shortages," Panyako added.

He also listed alleged unfair treatment of nurses and irregular transfers as one of the other issues the county must address within the next seven days.

Senior Trans Nzoia nurse denied salary

The nurses? union boss singled out a case involving Benson Buluma, a senior nurse at Wamalwa Kijana Teaching and Referral Hospital, who was allegedly denied his four-month salary for raising concerns about the state of health in the county.

Panyako claimed a nurse in the county had been denied salary for raising concerns about the state of health in the county. Photo: Emanuel Tarus.

Source: Original

However, according to Trans Nzoia health chief officer Philip Kapten, Buluma's salary has already been reinstated as per a directive of the Kitale Employment and Labour Relations court.

Kapten added that the stoppage of nurses' salaries had nothing to do with sharing expressing concerns about the state of the county health sector.

?We have complied with the directives of the court, but the matter is still active in court and therefore I cannot comment on the merits and demerits," Kapten stated.

Kitale slum dwellers protest over poor health services

Previously, TUKO.co.ke reported that a section of locals living in slum areas within Kitale town had staged a peaceful demonstration over poor services they were getting from county-run health facilities.

The locals from Mitume, Kisumu Ndogo and Tuwan areas asked Governor Natembeya to move swiftly and ensure challenges the health sector was facing are addressed.

For the last few weeks, Trans Nzoia county's health sector has been under scrutiny after a 21-year-old pregnant woman died due to alleged medical negligence at the Wamalwa Kijana Referral Hospital.

Proofreading by Mercy Nyambura, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.

Source: TUKO.co.ke