Comparing Kenya's Health Care Delivery System

¶ … health care systems and resources of Kenya as well as the challenges and triumphs they have experienced in the past and what they predict for the future. The Kenyan government administers the health care system in Kenya, however, there are plans to change this program through private equity funding because of the high costs associated with the government program.

Health care in Kenya is complicated because of rural areas where delivery is difficult, the poverty of the country and its people, and the government funding of the system, which is extremely low. The government expects people who make above a certain amount of money to fund their own health care, but that is often difficult for them to manage and enforce. The health care system in Kenya is difficult.

It is difficult for those in rural areas and slums to receive treatment, and many of Kenya's residents suffer from HIV / AIDS. One young slum resident says, "It was very dangerous there and dirty. We had to walk for half an hour just to get water. A lot of people have HIV / AIDS but not everyone can get help. When you are HIV positive, then you go to the doctor and he gives you the medicine'" (McIver, 2007, p. 31).

Because the health care system is flawed, many aid programs from other countries, such as the Red Cross, work in Kenya to help with providing health care. There are many young people who are orphans because their parents have died of AIDS, as well. Because of the problems, the government has been searching for a solution.

A reporter notes, "The Kenyan government provided free health care services for its rapidly growing population for close to 40 years, but because this was proving to be unsustainable, cost-sharing was introduced in the late 1990s to help finance administrative costs" (Onyango). Cost sharing has not worked either, and now the government is turning to three private health care companies to help fund Kenyan health care.

They will take over the administration and maintenance of Kenyan hospitals, but experts remain skeptical about the success of the venture, since most Kenyans receiving health care have little or no income to pay for the services (Onyango). A group of writers note about the country, "In 2003, the official HIV prevalence declined to 6.7%. Tuberculosis, other infectious diseases, and malnutrition remain some of the country's biggest public health problems" (Hugenberg, Anjango, Mwita & Opondo, 2007). Because the country experiences so many health concerns, the cost of health care delivery is high.

The latest numbers from 2001-2002 indicate that Kenya spends about 5.1% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in health care delivery. That equates to about $19.2 in U.S. dollars per resident (Hugenberg, Anjango, Mwita & Opondo, 2007). The group of writers continue, "The Ministry of Health operates 52% of health institutions; private parties run the other 48%. Patients paid privately for 45% of all health expenses, the Ministry of Health paid 35%, and international donors, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), churches, or other sources paid for the rest" (Hugenberg, Anjango, Mwita & Opondo, 2007).

Under the new plan, these numbers will certainly change, but there are no estimates how much they will affect the government's future budgets. In conclusion, Kenya's people face health care system difficulties because of the system and its administration. Kenya is hoping to change that by essentially.