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KIKUYU HOSPITAL BACKGROUNDER

PREAMBLE

In 1891 the first Scottish missionaries came to Kibwezi in Kenya which was known as British East Africa.  They started preaching among the Kamba and Masaai tribes.  They started what they called the East African Scottish Mission.

In 1898, the mission was transferred to Kikuyu under the Rev. Thomas Watson.  By 1920, the Church of Scotland Mission brought together all the congregations in East Africa.

The church in its discharge in the mission in the world cannot find itself solely to the preaching of the word and the administration of purely religious ordinances.  Believing that it is entrusted with a Ministry not only to the souls of men but also to their bodies and minds, and following the example of its Master who went about doing good, it claims the right, as it shall see fit to undertake educational, medical or charitable work for the benefit of all who deserve its help and declares its willingness to cooperate with governmental and other agencies in promoting the mental, physical and moral welfare.  It was in this connected therefore that the Scottish missionaries decided to start the Kikuyu Hospital in 1908.

The PCEA Kikuyu Hospital opened its doors in 1908 after two years of hard work by the Scottish Presbyterian Missionary Dr. Phillip and Dr. Arthur “Rigitari”.  The original buildings were made of mud thatched and had 12 beds and 2 cribs made of bricks where patients sought basic medical care.  This is the humble beginning of the Kikuyu Hospital once called the Hunter Memorial Hospital; now celebrating 100 years of existence.

The Hospital initially offered treatment for widespread epidemics which were; rinderpest, small pox, measles, complications of locust invasion and malaria.  More missionaries were sent from Scotland to help but they were very few and the living conditions were harsh and difficult.  Very few Africans wanted to work in the hospital due to the taboo associated with dead bodies especially among the Agikuyu community who formed the huge population of the area. It is in this early years that the doctor started teaching the church about the health dangers of female circumcision (FGM).

The first African clinical dresser in the hospital, Samson Wandaka, begun his training in the same year the hospital opened doors, his status rose to clinical dresser from being Dr. Arthur’s houseboy.  After intense training by Dr. Arthur, heavily hampered by language barrier, Mr. Wandaka learnt the ropes and begun treating patients with minimal supervision.  This was a milestone for the community allowing children to be trained in medicine and assist in the healthcare being provided by the missionaries.

As more Africans were trained, the hospital grew in terms of structure as well as in patients.  The Hunter Memorial Building was named after Dr. Hunter, a German doctor, who worked at Kikuyu Hospital.  Later the Asian community would sponsor a building referred to as the Asian clinic.  Kikuyu Hospital was the first institution to train nurses and medical assistants in Kenya.  It also had the first x-ray machine in the region and patients were referred from hospitals all over Kenya.

With its continued growth Kikuyu Hospital withstood the test of time and braved through various organizational challenges.  The Hospital started to offer specialized services in 1975 with the first being the Eye Unit for which the hospital is renowned for.  It was funded by Christofel Blinden Mission (CBM), a German non-governmental organization dealing with the blind.  It serves East and Central Africa and also offers training on Ophthalmology.

The hospital has undergone many changes in staffing, services, and infrastructure over the years. It has expanded in recent years to offer even more specialized services and currently boasts of having the following fully fledged departments;

• Eye Unit which has 4 sub-departments under it;
• Low vision clinic
• Eye surgery department
• Outpatient department
• Lenses and Frames Department ( Optical workshop)
• Dental Unit
• Orthopaedic Unit
• General unit

Outpatient Department

• ENT Department- caters for Ear, Nose and Throat,
• Diabetes Clinic
• VCT Department-Voluntary Counseling and Testing
• ART Department-Anti Retroviral Therapy
• Emergency/Casualty
• Maternal child and health care
• Physiotherapy/Gym

Wards

• General Surgical and medical Wards Male/Female
• Pediatric Ward and Private ward
• Orthopaedic Rehabilitation Ward
• Maternity Ward
• Eye ward

Diagnostic services

• Laboratory department- CD4 testing, wide range screening of opportunistic infections, Biochemistry e.g. Liver function tests, renal function tests, cardiac enzymes, Microbiology e.g. blood cultures,
• X-ray Department – Ultrasound scanning

Workshops
Limb workshop- prosthesis and orthoses
Production of eye instillations
Repair and maintenance of eye instruments for the region
Processing dental appliances e.g. dentures (removable and fixed), retainers e.g.  bleaching trays.
Operating theatres
Orthopaedic
General
Ophthalmology
Outreach
The hospital also serves the community through outreach services and cross boarder medical camps.

Kikuyu Hospital has embraced a wholesome approach to medicine offering services that are unique and available in select hospitals for example the orthopedic centre is the only one in East Africa, the Diabetes Clinic is one of only 4 such clinics in Kenya and the Rehabilitation Center is the only one in the region.

The hospital is located 20 kilometers from Nairobi city center in Kikuyu town, Kiambu District. It draws most of its patients from the surrounding area of over half a million population. This does not include the city of Nairobi with a population of over two million. Over 170,000 patients are seen in the hospital annually and 21516 from outreach services. The hospital has a capacity of 210 beds.