Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika has dismissed allegations that Nakuru Level Five Hospital exposed HIV/AIDS patients to expired drugs.
In a statement, the governor clarified that the said drugs expired before 2022 and could no longer be prescribed due to a change in treatment protocol.
According to the governor, the drugs could not be disposed of because they had to await an audit by the Global Fund, an international financing and partnership organization.
Governor Kihika dismisses allegations that Nakuru Level Five Hospital exposed HIV/AIDS patients to expired drugs. Photo: Courtesy.
However, Kihika’s clarification was backed by the Head of the Nakuru County Department for Health Services, Roselyn Mungai.
Roselyn disclosed that the first set of the expired drugs consisted of program medicines donated by a development partner.
She noted that the expiration of the program drugs was caused by a change in the user protocol, which necessitated the stoppage of their distribution.
Mungai further revealed that the second set of the drugs was a donation from KEMSA as short expiry drugs which were intended for high-volume facilities.
However, despite the donation, the drugs were not part of the essential medicines distributed to the Nakuru County Referral Hospital, and therefore they were never prescribed to patients.
The clarification comes after reports by a section of the media alleged that expired drugs were discovered in the stores of Nakuru Level Five Hospital.
The reports referenced an audit conducted during the 2023/2024 financial year.
