Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) Secretary General Davji Atellah has directed doctors countrywide to start discharging patients by Thursday.
Atellah said by December 19, all hospitals should release patients in preparation for the doctors’ strike set for December 22.
He said they will start with Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) and Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH).
“Doctors should start discharging patients from December 19, so that on the midnight of December 22, we don’t lose patients,” he said.
“The government should be able to take responsibility for the patients because we have given enough notice, it is them that is unresponsive.”
KMPDU said all private, public and faith-based hospitals will be closed for the strike.
The union cites unpaid interns and failure to implement a collective bargaining agreement as some of the reasons for the strike.
KMPDU announced that they will hold peaceful demonstrations on Monday, aimed at pressuring the government to fulfil the long-standing agreements made with the union.
These agreements include a CBA signed on June 30, 2017, and a Return-To-Work Formula (RTWF) agreed upon on May 8, 2024.
Atellah said despite signing a return-to-work formula, their needs are still being ignored, forcing them to go back to the streets after calling off the strike in May 2024.
“We addressed the disdain, dishonesty and disrespect with which the employer continues to handle our concerns,” he said.
“Court orders remain unheeded, return-to-work formulas are ignored, and CBAs are violated and dismantled.”
Atellah detailed the protest route in a formal letter to Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja.
The demonstration will begin at KNH, proceeding to Nairobi Hospital, the Ministry of Health offices at Afya House and finally the Parliament Buildings.
The letter was also copied to key security offices, including the Regional Police Commander for Nairobi Region and the OCS offices at Central and Kilimani Police Stations.