Health Cabinet Secretary Adan Duale has presided over the issuance of internship offer letters to 316 nursing interns.
The interns will join another cohort of over 6,000 medical interns, who received their offer letters on 30th June 2025.
While issuing the letters to this cohort, the CS said the interns were erroneously omitted from the maiden list of successful candidates.
“In light of these findings, the Ministry has undertaken the following corrective measure of posting the 316 pre-interns, who had graduated and qualified, but were wrongly excluded from the initial list,” he stated.
Duale said that arising from the initial posting of the 6,484 interns, health stakeholders launched a complaint that resulted in the disqualification of some candidates on the grounds of discrepancies.
“Unfortunately, shortly after the initial posting, the ministry began receiving complaints regarding the posting of 2,098 BSc Nursing interns. In response, we ordered an immediate investigation into the discrepancies identified in the posting list,” he emphasized.
To remedy the situation, the CS announced that the Ministry has put in place a raft of measures including the suspension of Dr. Lister Onsongo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nursing Council of Kenya, pending further investigation into the irregularities in the internship posting.
Speaking at the Ministry Headquarters, Afya House Nairobi, Duale revealed they have also revoked internship offers for the 42 students who were posted without having completed their studies.
“The Ministry acknowledges that the revocation of internship offers, especially for those who had already reported to their stations, has caused significant distress and disappointment. While the affected candidates were initially cleared and issued offer letters in good faith, a subsequent audit revealed that some had not yet completed the full graduation process, as required under the internship policy,” Duale stated.
The CS said in upholding the integrity of the health internship program and in adherence to established policy, regulatory frameworks, and the Public Service Internship Guidelines, only candidates who fully met all academic and licensure requirements have been admitted for internship.
“Moving forward, the Ministry is enhancing coordination among all stakeholders to prevent a recurrence of such incidents. This includes close collaboration with the Nursing Council of Kenya and training institutions to strengthen eligibility verification, ensure accurate and timely data sharing and streamline communication through a centralized digital internship management system,” he added.
The CS reiterated that such measures aim to improve transparency and efficiency throughout the deployment process.
“Let me reiterate the Ministry’s unwavering commitment to a transparent, fair, and accountable internship placement process. We are taking firm and deliberate steps to seal all loopholes and ensure that the irregularities witnessed do not recur in future postings,” Duale further affirmed.
He challenged the interns to approach the opportunity with humility, professionalism, patriotism and a strong commitment to patient-centered care.
“You are the future of our health system, and we count on you to serve with dedication and integrity,” he reiterated.
By Wangari Ndirangu
