Testimonials
Julius Musembi
I did spend slightly over 3 weeks in Kenya – my home country (November 28th – December 19th 2007). Majority of my time in Kenya was spend organizing, coordinating, and participating in 2 Rural Community Health Camps (near where I was born and grew up) as a volunteer and financial sponsor. My work was in association with a group of 40 Kenyan Doctors who have been performing these camps for the last 3 years.
Decision to engage and participate in this activity had been simmering in my mind for a while. This is based on my frequent visits back to Kenya and observing the difficulties faced by people in accessing and getting health care. My mind was made up early last year (April 2007) when my mom had a stroke and admitted to hospital. For the first time in close to 20 years, I actually visited a Kenyan Hospital. I encountered a situation I find very difficult to describe and unable to understand how an average Kenyan deals with. Knowing my Mom was in the best care there was in Kenya incensed me more because I knew the situation is much worse everywhere else and to many people.
Some who visited my mom (close family and personal friends) by way of expressing their sympathy told me stories from their own experience with the health care and in a way actually expressing their concern my mom’s health problem may cause to my family financially. Bear in mind that over 90% of 35 Million people in Kenya have no health insurance and rely on government for health care
- A childhood friend of mine described to me how he and his wife 2 years back could not be let out of the hospital grounds (Patrolled by armed guards) after a normal delivery of their last born until a bill of Ksh 83,000 – Kenyan shillings ($1,200 USD) could be settled after 3 Days stay. She had a difficult labor had normal delivery without any further medical care. He makes only Ksh 3,000 a month (Ksh 36,000 – $500 USD a year). A decent salary by Kenyan standards.
- Another family friend had lived with and watched their Mother die at home of colon cancer after visiting 4 different hospitals each with 2 – 3 weeks hospital stay and misdiagnosed each time until the last (5th) one which had advised them to care for her from home since there was nothing they could do except pile more medical bills on them. Their mom died 2 months later and the Family is now bankrupt from her hospital expenses.
- A rural area neighbor of ours visited me with an abscessed tooth. He had attempted to extract his own tooth by using a rock as a weight and a string tied to the tooth. Basically like Tom Hanks in the Movie Castaway. This is because it costs about Ksh 5,000 for dental consultation and about another Ksh 10,000 for extraction. He has no income and the little he earns from odd jobs is for food and education for the kids. There is no room for medical expenses.
These are all people I know personally with real firsthand medical experience about themselves.
There are few of more depressing narratives but you get the point….