Subsaharan Africa - Kenya
Kenya, located in East Africa, is home to approximately 46 million people. Kenya sits on the coast of the Indian Ocean and is neighbored by Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. As a low-income country with an estimated per capita income of $1,640, Kenya faces many health challenges that span infectious and non-communicable diseases. Demographic transitions are taking place in Kenya as treatment for HIV advances and becomes more widely available. However, while life expectancy is increasing, other non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease are also increasing.
In 2019, IHI began developing dual partnerships across Kenya. The team visited several counties and met with several government and health officials to discuss local health priorities and to set an agenda for addressing key areas of need over the next 5 years across each country. Several priorities were identified that included:
Training Community Health Workers to go into the community to provide health education.
Conduct population study to include screening for chronic disease, including diabetes, hypertension, and chronic kidney disease.
Developing programs that involve task shifting and training nurses to provide interventions that enable medication titration.
Pilot data was collected to identify key social determinants of health that are impacting health and well-being across representative communities in each country. Next steps include analyzing our findings to share in preparation for our next onsite visit that will inform the development of long-term capacity building efforts across each country.
Sources: Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Global Health – Kenya; Global Health – Malawi.