KMPDU demands audit of hiring of foreign doctors in the wake of organ trafficking claims
It says more than 1,655 foreign medical practitioners are employed and practicing in the country, mainly in private hospitals within major cities and towns that target wealthy clientele and middle-class Kenyans
The Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) has demanded for an investigation into the licensing and recruitment of foreign doctors in the wake of reports of rising cases of unethical medical practices and organ trafficking in the country.
In a statement, KMPDU Deputy Chairman Dr Kahura Mundia and Deputy Secretary General Dr Dennis Miskellah said there is need for an urgent audit and investigation of the continued licensing and recruitment of foreign medical practitioners by the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) and private healthcare providers, and the organised organ trafficking that is allegedly ongoing.
They said more than 1,655 foreign medical practitioners are employed and practicing in the country, mainly in private hospitals within major cities and towns that target wealthy clientele and middle-class Kenyans.
“Medical practitioners are brought to the country, contracted and hired through practices that circumvent ethical and professional standards. The contracts for the doctors- mainly from countries in Asia – are often exploitative and they work under dangerous working conditions. The poor labour practices force many to engage in unethical practices that put patients’ lives at risk. As a result, they too are victims of systemic mistreatment bordering on labour trafficking,” the statement said.
The two said KMPDU is standing firmly against this profit-driven practice underpinned by the exploitation of vulnerable migrant workers, the disregard for Kenyan practitioners and public, and the hidden costs of privatisation.
We stand against the irresponsible endangering of the lives of every Kenyan citizen and patients who seek care in these private hospitals. We remind the KMPDC that unemployed qualified Kenyan medical professionals numbers over 4,000 practitioners,” the statement by Mundia and Miskellah added.
They said that for Kenyan practitioners who remain unemployed after being educated using taxpayers’ money, it is an insult that they are left to struggle, with some resorting to selling timber or hawking in the streets to earn a living.
“It is worth noting that we previously raised an alarm over allegations of illegal and unethical organ trafficking practices in the country by known global syndicates operating in other jurisdictions and called for urgent investigations into the matter. Today, KMPDU is informing all Kenyans that the now-confirmed illegal, unethical, and dangerous trafficking of organs in the country is directly linked to the non-transparent and dubious licensing and recruitment of foreign medical practitioners.”
They supported the recent directive by Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale to freeze the licensing of foreign doctors following claims Mediheal Group of Hospitals was involving in illegal kidney transplants involving foreigners.
However, they added that alongside the order, KMPDC needs to conduct an audit of all private institutions’ recruitment, hiring and contracting practices.
“We want answers on the process followed to do recruiting, verifying of qualifications, ethical compliance and legal standing of medical practitioners employed,” they said.
Included in the audit, KMPDC must provide an accounting of how many practitioners are foreign and what services they are providing.
The Ministry of Health must also disclose the specialist skills and areas where genuine shortages exist in Kenya while the ministry of Labour needs to audit the employment conditions and contracts of all foreign medical practitioners for compliance with Kenyan labor laws and international labour and migration conventions, and publishes the findings.
The two said a collaborative process should be initiated to develop a comprehensive policy on the licensing and recruitment of non-Kenyan healthcare practitioners that prioritises local talent, skills development, and retention.
“All positions that fall vacant as a result of the audits and investigations shall be immediately filled, through a transparent and competitive process, with qualified, unemployed Kenyan doctors across both public and private healthcare institutions.”
