New rules to improve hospital services

By Alex Ndegwa and Roselyn Obala

Public hospitals can keep any money they have left over at the end of a given year, the Government has decided.

This was revealed in new regulations to ensure prudent use of funds. Under the rules, hospitals will no longer surrender the balance of funds allocated to them or income generated at the end of a financial year to Treasury. Instead, such funds can be retained.

"The receipts, earnings, accruals and the balance of the services at the close of each financial year shall not be paid into the Consolidated Fund but shall be retained by the respective hospitals for the purpose for which the service is established," states the rules, issued by Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta.

Yesterday, Medical Services PS James ole Kiyiapi told the Public Accounts Committee that implementation of the Government Financial Management (Hospital Management Services) Regulations, 2009 would ensure efficiency in hospitals.

"In the next two years, you will notice a difference in running of hospitals and some of these issues raised will not occur," Prof Kiyiapi said, with reference to audit queries by Controller and Auditor General.

Manage resources

The regulations, gazetted on October 16, establish a Hospital Management Services Fund that shall, among others, give more powers to hospitals and medical facilities to plan and manage resources under them.

The regulations establish a National Hospital Services Committee to approve work plans prepared by health facilities, ensure equitable distribution of resources and review and approve annual expenditure statements. At the same time, the committee heard a Cabinet minister and an MP owe the ministries of Public Health and Medical Services Sh200,000 in outstanding imprest.

Education Minister Sam Ongeri is said to have an outstanding imprest amounting to Sh136,822 while Kilgoris MP Gideon Konchella owes Sh60,000.

The amount is part of a total Sh949,926 in outstanding temporary imprest for ministers and assistants as at June 30 last year. PAC chairman Bonny Khalwale directed the PS to recover the funds.

Meanwhile, three suspects are in police custody over alleged theft of drugs at the Kakamega Provincial General Hospital.

Kakamega Deputy OCPD Nicholas Maina said a pharmacist, a teacher and a businesswoman were locked up after questioning.

Western PPO King’ori Mwangi said they recovered Government drugs in Kakamega and Bungoma.

 

 

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