A probe into allegations of sexual assault at the Kenyatta National Hospital has bore no fruit. This after a preliminary report by the Parliamentary Committee on Health failed to ascertain allegations of attempted rape of female patients at the facility.
Investigations were launched after a woman claimed she was sexually assaulted when she sought to breastfeed her baby at the facility.
The rape allegations were made against morgue attendants on a Facebook group known as “Buyer Beware”, accusing the hospital of being “a hotspot of all kinds of criminal activities”.
Following a tour of the hospital on Wednesday, in which the Parliamentary Committee engaged with patients in different wards during a fact-finding mission, the report indicated there is no evidence of rape.
Baringo County Woman Representative Gladwell Cheruiyot, a member of the committee, said they held one-on-one conversations with female patients who said the allegations were false.
“We have visited the wards and on asking the mothers what they are answering is that since they came to this facility they have never come across one of their own who has been raped, but they have some kind of fear of the unknown which they have inherited. We are asking the management of Kenyatta National Hospital to clear the fear from the patients,” said Cheruiyot.
The report further states that security had been enhanced at the hospital and more security personnel are still being hired.
After visiting various wards and departments, the committee also made key observations. They noted that the hospital has inadequate staff to handle the large numbers of patients who visit the hospital on a daily basis.
The facility is said to be short of 1,200 workers.
The committee also raised issues with the hospital’s bed capacity as the number of patients surpasses the number of available beds.
The hospital’s equipment was also found out to be inadequate, old and some even outdated.
The members of the committee promised to address the issues during their sittings.
Last week, the Chief Executive Officer of Kenyatta Hospital Lily Koros told the committee that since she took over the reins at the hospital in 2014, the management has never received any complaints of sexual harassment from its patients.
Koros also told the committee that the hospital board recommended that bodies be collected at 2 am and 4.30 am instead of the usual 3 am. The hospital also plans to enhance periodic briefing of the mortuary attendants and procure modern body trolleys.
The hospital board, which met on Sunday, also resolved to have more officers from the National Police Service deployed at the facility to boost security.
