County Government of Laikipia

The long awaited Orthopedic Camp was officially opened by H.E Governor Joshua Irungu, EGH in presence of officials drawn from the various departments in the executive, and the County assembly represented by its health Committee.

Nearly five hundred patients have been seen so far, with dozens already booked for surgeries. The teams include the three Orthopaedic Surgeons in Laikipia Health Service - LHS, visiting surgeons from other counties, and three Orthopaedic surgeons from partner hospitals in the UK through Future Health Africa.

The Governor interacted with patients admitted for surgery for the camp at the newly renovated Surgical Ward (formerly the female ward). Some patients have lived with their deformities for decades. For some, it was a moment of reconnection back to care that had missed for long. The camp has seen the most extreme of cases from simple to the very complicated deformations. The patients range from the very young with congenital deformities to the very old who have had bone and joint injuries. All these surgeries are provided without any out of pocket payments. We are confident that many people who were classified as having disabilities will regain full function - it's true that many of the disabilities that we see are reversible.

This event offers an opportunity for mutual learning by all the teams involved. In the words of one member of Future Health Africa, it sets the standards for care, and puts Laikipia on the global scene in specialised healthcare provision. The County Government will renew its MoU with Future Health Africa to ensure that these partnerships and collaborations continue to thrive.

We would like to further thank Future Health Africa team from the UK for their incredible support in donating implants for the needy patients.

Later on, the Governor broke the ground for four construction projects. These projects include a modern incinerator house, HIV and TB clinics, physiotherapy center, blood satellite centre. The former female ward was commissioned today and is already in use by patients undergoing surgery in this camp. The female ward salvaged through extensive renovations. The contractors were given strict timelines to implement the projects. All these projects will be commissioned on 8th June 2023.

In the next two weeks, the governor will further break the ground for two further projects. The expansion of the outpatient including unification with the emergency department; and the building to house CT Scan and MRI. In the pipeline is the overhaul of the ambulance fleet and the establishment of the Laikipia ambulance system.