Walking into the Murang’a Hospital Palliative Care Unit (PCU), one would be surprised as to how far they have come from the abandoned shack they were previously granted. A concrete jungle it is and a beautiful one at that. Before you get to the entrance, a welcome mat is ready to receive you into the 3 roomed establishment.
Once you get into the building, you cannot help but notice the air of serenity that surrounds you. The white walls and numerous windows that let in enough natural light just speaks of the peacefulness within the area. As you sit down to await your service the television that is at the right corner of the room is set to their vernacular station to keep you entertained during the waiting period.
To say the least the Palliative Care unit is fully equipped together with a consultation bay and the pharmacy within the hospital ensures that the unit has adequate palliative care essential medicines including morphine.
The unit is making a very big impact in the wards as well as the community with the support groups they hold at the unit and the ward rounds covered within the hospital. The palliative care unit serves an average of 50 patients a month majority of whom have cancer with a total of 114 new patients in 2016
Despite the Murang’a Hospital acknowledging the palliative care unit and what they do, they still face a few challenges such as limited transport to help them in facilitating their home visits.
Kenya Hospices and Palliative Care Association (KEHPCA) acknowledges the support from the Hospital administration and the Murang’a county-Department of health for employing the staff, renovating the clinic and provision of medicine; Hospice Care Kenya for equipping the unit; Treat The Pain for supporting the capacity building initiatives and Nyeri Hospice for mentorship.
Leave a Reply