Sombre of mood continues to engulf the health sector as the country loses the second intern doctor to suicide, just two months after the shocking demise of Dr. Desiree Moraa, a medical intern whose lifeless body was discovered at an apartment in Gatundu. Dr. Moraa’s death was linked to the toxic work environment and extreme pressure from the supervisor.
Dr. Francis Njuki, a pharmacist at Thika Level 5 hospital, is the latest casualty to suicide. The medical intern has reportedly worked in the said hospital since August with no salary, putting the ministry of health in the spotlight over the negligence toward the intern healthcare workers in the country.
“Dr. Francis Njuki was until his demise a pharmacist at Thika Level 5, where he had worked since August 2024 with no salary. Earlier in September, we had lost Dr. Desiree Moraa under similar circumstances. This now brings the total number of interns whom we have lost to suicide to 2 in 2 months, and I am aware of 5 who attempted suicide and were rescued and hospitalised. Their crime was choosing a career in medicine.” statement from Dr. Davji Bhinji Atellah, KMPDU Sec Gen and CEO.
A statement from the Internship Liaison Committee under the Medical Dentists Licensing Committee links Dr. Njuki’s demise to unpaid wages spanning four months, limiting access to basic needs such as rent and utility bills.
“Like many of his colleagues, DR. Njuki faced insurmountable challenges in meeting basic needs, such as rent and utility bills, exacerbated by a staggering fur months of unpaid wages. Overwhelming financial constraints have adverse effects on general mental well-being,” a statement by the Internship Liaison Committee Chairman, Dr. Muinde Nthusi, and Dr. Elisha Harry Otieno, the Secretary General.
“The recent loss of Dr. Desiree Moraa is still fresh in our minds, and despite the usual rhetoric from the ministry of health officials and other stakeholders, it is clear that mere statements are insufficient. We ask: how many more lives must we lose before a decisive action is taken?”
The Internship Liaison Committee has called on doctor interns across every internship center, including those public health facilities, communities, and industrial rotations, to withdraw their services until a resolution is reached.
“With these dire circumstances in mind, we hereby call upon ALL doctor interns (medical officers, pharmacists, and dentists) across the country—those in public health facilities, community and industrial practice rotations, and major referral hospitals—to withdraw their services from their respective internship centers INDEFINITELY until a satisfactory resolution regarding compensation is reached. Our demand is simple and unequivocal: PAY DOCTOR INTERNS NOW!”
The Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists’ Union (KMPDU) has also expressed their displeasure with the government’s delay in paying interns their wages on time, further exacerbating their economic conditions. The union has demanded an immediate payment of the intern doctor’s salaries at the rate agreed upon 7 years ago.
“As Union, we find these inhumane acts by a government that does not care about its healthcare workers UNACCEPTIBLE. We demand immediate payment of the intern doctors’ salaries at the rate agreed upon 7 years ago. The Kenya Kwanza government cannot deafen our ears with UHC choruses when they clearly do not care for the health workers who are supposed to provide the UHC,” KMPDU reiterated.
President Ruto’s administration meted an extreme disparity on healthcare workers, intern doctors whose salaries were reduced from KES 200 thousand to KES 70 thousand in just one year after assuming the office. Intern doctors raked in mental illness due to their inability to meet their basic needs and extreme pressure from their supervisors. With delayed wages spanning months, Dr. Moraa and Dr. Francis Njuki resorted to painful endings, leaving repareable grief among friends and family members.
