Trans Nzoia County Governor Patrick Khaemba takes pride in building a level six hospital, Trans Nzoia County Teaching and Referral Hospital that has a modern mortuary with a capacity of holding 64 bodies.
Speaking at an inspection tour of the hospital that has been built for over seven years, Khaemba said the hospital’s mortuary is a place of dignity for departed souls.
“We don’t have a mortuary in Trans Nzoia. The one we have built is a modern one. Has a capacity of preserving 64 bodies, but we can expand it to accommodate 94 bodies,” Khaemba said.
Khaemba said the hospital, which has a capacity of 400 beds, is almost complete and is due for opening on Monday, August 1, 2022.
“We are planning to open some sections of the outpatient wing. This hospital has 400 beds, 45 of the beds will be for ICU. It also has 12 theatres increasing the total number of theatres in the county to 15,” Khaemba revealed.
Khaemba said the county government is engaging the national government so that the Ministry of Health takes over the hospital that has consumed over Ksh1.5 billion.
“Because of the magnitude of the hospital, the county government does not have the capacity to run it independently. We are therefore asking the national government to take it over and involve the county government in the board of management of this hospital,” he said.
The county boss said his administration needs about Ksh2 billion to make the hospital fully operational.
Khaemba calls for support
“Nonmedical equipment, the x-rays and the MRI are very expensive. We need about Ksh2 billion which we don’t have. We need about 500 to 1000 staff at its peak. We also need about 500 shillings to hire staff,” he stated.
The second-term governor took a swipe at his critics who have labelled the hospital as a white elephant project.
“We shall open it in stages. I want to leave it when noncommunicable diseases and outpatient units are operational. I am doing this because people have called it a white elephant. Have any of you seen an elephant here, a white or black one?” Khaemba posed.
