Lodwar – November 24, 2025 (Public Communication and Media Relations)
At least 52 health facility in-charges from Tukana Central’s levels two, three four facilities, the Lodwar County Referral Hospital, and both sub-county and county health management teams, met to review health indicators and assess their 2025 performance against previously set targets.
The meeting was to identify gaps, strengthen existing systems, and chart ways of improving outcomes. Discussions focused on enhancing patient care, operational efficiency, management, quality of care, and timely data reporting.
The team reviewed three key areas including Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) indicators from the last two quarters (April–June 2025 and July–September 2025), national and county performance targets mapped against actual results to determine factors affecting performance, and lastly, best practices from top-performing facilities.
The Deputy Director for Medical Services, Dr Bonventure Ameyo, emphasized the importance of timely, accurate, and high-quality data reporting, noting that such reports guide decision-making by policymakers, stakeholders, and partners. He said that consistent and quality weekly reports improve care, save lives, reduce costs, and build patient trust, ensuring safe, effective, and patient-centered treatment.
Dr Mercy Kawira, Medical Officer of Health in Turkana Central, called for more community sensitization and engagement to improve uptake of all services. “These services include immunization, antenatal and postnatal care, maternity, commodity, nutrition, laboratory, tuberculosis, and non-communicable diseases,” she said.
She also acknowledged the best-performing facilities, noting that some facilities exceeded their targets, sighting Kawalase’s achievement in meeting its mentorship goals, This, she said, encourages peer learning and help identify gaps easily.
Geoffrey Kibet, Nurse-in-Charge at Lochoraikeny Dispensary in Kang’atosa Ward, reported that the facility met its immunization target for children under one year by October 2025 and has since surpassed it, with more than 100 children immunized. He added that outreach activities greatly improved Vitamin A uptake, with 137 clients receiving supplements during the most recent outreach. The number of HIV-positive clients seeking services also increased from three to nine within six months.
Benson Musau, Nutrition Officer at UNICEF, noted that consistent quarterly review meetings help improve data and service quality, feeding into other forums such as the County Nutrition Technical Forum and the Health Stakeholders Forum. He observed that health teams have become more receptive and resilient over time.
Kibet mentioned that they aim to complete viral load testing for all HIV clients in the coming year but still face challenges such as mothers delivering at home. A community-based plan is in place to improve postnatal care and promote skilled deliveries.
Dr Ameyo added that there is a need to accelerate Social Health Authority (SHA) registration and increase case notifications across health facilities by 20 percent, with new and repeat visits for children under five expected to rise by 50 percent within a week. He encouraged expanding health services to reach underserved communities.
Indicators reviewed also included HIV treatment and viral load uptake, as well as Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) coverage at health facilities.
Deputy Director for Primary Health Care, Peter Ekope, called for timely submission of reports and emphasized that improving patient outcomes requires identifying and addressing issues such as high error rates or low patient satisfaction.
Participants also noted that the vastness of Turkana contributes to low performance indicators, with challenges including long distances between facilities and knowledge gaps regarding reporting tools.
Martin Imoni, Health and Nutrition Officer at Turkana Christian Development Mission (TCDM) shared that this review meeting is vital opportunity for tracking progress, identifying gaps and fostering continuous improvement to enhance health outcomes and strengthen the healthcare system.
Lead sub-county program coordinators, representatives from private health facilities, including Namo Hospital and Lodwar Hills Hospital, as well as the Kenya Red Cross Society (represented by Rukia Abubakar), were also in attendance.
The review meeting was facilitated by the County Government in collaboration with TCDM, and supported by Save the Children Kenya, Imarisha Jamii, and UNICEF.
