The Ministry of Health has intervened at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) following complaints over the quality of healthcare at the facility.

Principal Secretary for Medical Services Ouma Oluga visited the Kisumu-based hospital on Saturday, October 10, saying the Ministry had stepped in to address the concerns raised.

Speaking after a meeting with hospital staff, Oluga said the facility was committed to improving service delivery and ensuring patients received proper care without other considerations taking priority over their treatment.

"It's both in the value of the President's agenda that this hospital functions properly. I have met with the staff to reinforce that we must do everything possible to instil value-based healthcare," Oluga stated.

"We are also not blind to some complaints that are there on social media. Just so the staff knows that we are still at the helm of leadership and we are watching the responses in the community," he added.

According to the PS, staff at the Kisumu city-based facility will undergo transformational training to strengthen teamwork and improve service delivery.

"For the staff, we are going to do a lot. We are going to do transformational training and look at how we work together in the cycle care."

The move comes amid mounting criticism from members of the public who had taken to social media to recount their experiences at the hospital, including allegations of negligence and accounts from families who said they had lost relatives while seeking treatment.

One patient in particular raised concerns about the time taken to discharge patients at the Kisumu-based referral hospital, alleging that the process could take an entire day under the best circumstances and even longer during normal operations.

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Following the complaints, Oluga assured members of the public that the facility was there to serve them and would ensure that their concerns were addressed effectively.

At the same time, JOOTRH had also earlier announced an internal investigation into complaints, saying it had engaged the complainant on the concerns she raised.

During his engagement with staff, Oluga challenged the hospital to examine whether its actions were producing the desired outcomes for patients and the community.

He said the institution needed to reinforce value-based healthcare and ensure that patients' interests remained central to its operations.

"We have to look deeply and reflect on ourselves to see the accuracy of our actions and the experiences those actions produce for the people and the community," he said.