President Uhuru Kenyatta. PHOTO | FILE
By MAINA WANJIHIA
When the Jubilee Government came to power, it made certain pledges to the wananchi.
These included increasing healthcare financing; increasing
the number of healthcare facilities; setting up and equipping diagnostic
centres; encouraging medical research, including alternative medicines;
and better remunerations for healthcare personnel. It was the declared
desire of the government to “ensure all Kenyans get quality and
affordable healthcare”.
Other than the free maternity package, the
government has not done very well on these pledges. Every which way you
look, something is rotten in this country’s healthcare services.
A documentary aired by the media recently
highlighted gross medical malpractices. There is one major problem in
this country that can be summarised as lack of accountability and
responsibility.
In the healthcare sector, it is best addressed by
vital components of clinical governance. What is clinical governance?
It encompasses activities that promote, review, measure and monitor the
quality of care given to patients.
The health sector cannot be divorced from
governance issues. Clinical governance is a quality assurance
scorecard designed to ensure that standards of care are maintained and
improved and that the health authorities are accountable to the public.
Clinical governance in health is what corporate
governance is in the private sector. Financial controls, service
performance and quality must be integrated at every level.
Clinical Governance addresses those structures,
systems and processes that ensure proper management of organisations’
operations and delivery of service.
Why should the health sector pursue clinical
governance? By placing quality at the heart of healthcare, patients’
experience is improved, thus securing the confidence of the people. In
order to meet their responsibility to the patients, health workers
strive to avoid mistakes.
An open and participative environment is created
when commitment to quality is shared by all professionals and managers
in the health sector, supported by clearly identifiable resources – both
human and financial.
What does Clinical Governance include? Several
countries have introduced Clinical Governance in their health sectors as
the framework for managing, developing and implementing quality care
services.
Clinical governance therefore provides the platform
on which health workers can develop Accountability and Responsibility
for the quality of care they offer. It also encourages continuous
quality improvement and provides the framework for audit purposes.
The Health ministry must take ownership and provide the leadership required; the roadmap for change; a total lateral shift.
The author is a medical doctor.
