Shortage of medical oxygen in Nakuru County will soon be a thing of the past following the construction of an oxygen production plant at the Nakuru Level 5 Teaching and Referral Hospital.

The modern plant will be producing 2,000 litres of oxygen per minute and will have a 660kva standby generator to ensure an uninterruptible power supply in the event of a KPLC blackout.

The construction of the superstructures to house the plant and powerhouse is over 90 per cent done. The standby generator and oxygen production equipment arrived in the country early this month.

During the groundbreaking ceremony in August last year, Mr Hillary Kosgei, the Technical Director at Debra Limited said the dual system will ensure uninterruptible Oxygen supply in the event one unit breaks down.

“When the demand for medical Oxygen is low, one machine can rest and this will enhance durability. One unit can refill 48 oxygen cylinders in 24hrs, which is enough to run a hospital,” he stated.

Once complete, Nakuru will be the second County to have such a high-yielding medical oxygen plant in Kenya. The other is found in Uasin Gishu at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret.

The facility will supplement the 1,200 tonnes capacity per minute plant at the hospital, which is jointly run under public-private partnerships by Hewa Tele Limited and Nakuru County.

The construction of the medical oxygen plant is in line with Governor Lee Kinyanjui’s manifesto of improving the state of healthcare services in the region.

Governor Lee’s administration is increasing the intensive care unit and staff capabilities to enable the County to deal with medical emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and others.

The Ministry of Health has announced 1,596 new cases of coronavirus from a sample size of 4,242 tested in the last 24 hours.

The country’s positivity rate is at 37.6 per cent.

In a statement on Monday, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe said from the cases 1,454 are Kenyans while 142 are foreigners, and that a total of 879 patients are females and 717 are males.

The youngest patient is an eight-month-old child while the oldest is 91 years.

This brings the total confirmed positive cases to 284,150 and cumulative tests so far conducted are 2,994,912.

The CS has urged Kenyans to remain cautious and vigilant during the festive season, as the country is still amid a pandemic.

“I would like to urge Kenyans, not to engage in mass parties, but if they have to, do it outdoors and observe the Ministry of Health Covid-19 guidelines and protocols,” Kagwe said.

Distribution of cases

Nairobi has 683 cases, Siaya 213, Murang’a 133, Uasin Gishu 75, Kajiado 73, Kakamega 62, Kiambu 55,

Nakuru 53, Migori 48, Kitui 38, Kericho 33, Nyeri 26, Kwale 19, Laikipia 14, Homa Bay 14, Kirinyaga 13, Embu 13, Marsabit 9, Turkana 6, Machakos 5, Meru 5, Kisii 4 and Makueni 2.

Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics shows that about 250,000 jobs were shed in the 3 months leading to March 2021.

This was despite the economy having showed signs of recovery from the COVID-19 hardships. This report plainly shows that COVID -19 pandemic has been a grim period for workers and businesses indicating the employment sector is trailing   the ongoing economic recovery.

COVID-19 has been a huge setback for the progress on poverty eradication in Kenya. Job losses, food insecurity and impact on social lifestyles has also seen a spike  in mental health cases.

While many companies were shutting down or down-scaling, there are some companies that always remained fully operational and open.

A good example is the Group of Companies  founded and chaired by Jayesh Saini, one of the top entrepreneurs in the country.

During the height of COVID-19, Jayesh Saini vowed not to add to the challenges afflicting Kenyans by down-scaling or closing shop, despite the macro economic pressures to do so.

This single act to keep his over 3,000 employees employed throughout the pandemic period in his various establishments has been key in ensuring their food security, healthcare and housing for the past one and a half years.

The efforts towards supporting his staff during this difficult time has had a big effect on his companies in terms of the personal toll it has taken to keep them afloat.

However, this strain is nothing compared to the far reaching impact this has had on his staff e.g. continuation of education for staff children, effective support in the event of illness through the Bliss Healthcare network and fostering strong relationships at home leading to better mental health.

This ultimately leads to better work performance.

We are not out of the woods yet as regards COVID-19, even with the lifting of the curfew recently.

However, with emphasis on getting more Kenyans vaccinated and having more affordable health set ups offering quality healthcare like Bliss Healthcare, we shall make it out of this pandemic stronger and better than ever!