Kenyan nurses protest for safer working conditions at coronavirus facility

17 March 2020 - 10:15 By Busang Senne
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A doctor and laboratory specialists at the Infectious Disease Unit of Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi get ready to visit a ward for quarantined people on March 15 2020.
A doctor and laboratory specialists at the Infectious Disease Unit of Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi get ready to visit a ward for quarantined people on March 15 2020.
Image: Yasuyoshi CHIBA / AFP

Kenyan nurses in the coronavirus isolation ward at Mbagathi Hospital are protesting about a perceived lack of health and safety measures as the country starts to battle the spread of the disease.

According to Kenya National Union of Nurses secretary-general Seth Panyako, the go-slow is a reaction to nurses being the most vulnerable health practitioners in hospitals, yet they do not have adequate protective gear and have not received training on how to safely mitigate the crisis.

BBC reported that the ward has 22 patients who have come into contact with someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus.   


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