NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 16 – The Ministry of Health is set to post over 3,500 medical interns to various medical facilities in the 2024/2025 financial year.
Principal Secretary Harry Kimtai stated that the posting will kick off from July 1 based on the list tabled by various regulatory bodies.
This followed an agreement during a meeting between the Ministry of Health and representatives of the doctors awaiting internship postings.
“Internship in the Health Sector in Kenya is recognized as compulsory experiential learning where graduates build upon previously acquired knowledge and experiences by working within the professional work setting,” Kimtai stated.
The cadres include 849 medical Officer Interns, 72 Dentist Officer Interns, 289 Pharmacist Interns,1134 Nursing Officers,145 Bachelor of Science in Clinical Medicine and 1270 Diploma Clinical Medicine.
According to the Ministry, four thousand hundred and twenty nine(4,129) interns have already been posted to the approved public and private Hospital Internship centers during the 2023/2024 fiscal year a period ending on 31st June 2024, which will pave the way for the 2024/2025 cohorts.
In response to the letter From the PS, the secretary general of Kenya Medical Practitioners, pharmacist, and Dentist Union(KMPDU) Davji Atellah stressed that all medical interns be posted by the end of February 2024 as agreed between the MOH_Kenya and @kmpdu on 22nd February,2023.
“The decision by the ministry to unilaterally vary the intern posting agreement is met with strong opposition. This move seems to undermine the resolutions established in January and challenges the integrity of the entire process,” he stated on X.
However, today the Health Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Health Susan Nakhumicha held a consultative meeting with the Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO), and the Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN).
The meeting was aimed towards consensus building and a consultative approach with all stakeholders to ensure internships are streamlined
