Kiambu Level 5 Hospital has intensified efforts to improve maternal and newborn healthcare through expanded neonatal services and investments in modern medical infrastructure aimed at reducing infant mortality.
The hospital’s Newborn Unit (NBU) now features specialized rooms for premature, critically ill, and recovering infants, equipped with incubators, CPAP machines for breathing support, phototherapy equipment for jaundice treatment, and continuous monitoring systems.
This way, the facility can accommodate up to 100 babies, up from 50.
During a tour of the facility, Pediatrician Dr. Sophie Musoma said the unit has been structured to provide different levels of care depending on the baby’s condition and weight.
“This first room is mainly for preterm babies below 1.6 kilograms,” she explained.
The acute room serves as the first point of care for critically ill newborns arriving from the maternity wing. Here, medical teams assess breathing, temperature, circulation, feeding, and oxygen levels before stabilizing the infants.
“Like here we have a child weighing 1,200 grams. We first assess the airway and breathing before connecting them to assisted oxygen support, if necessary,” Dr. Musoma said.
The hospital has also embraced strict infection prevention measures, including designated shoe racks, hand-washing stations, controlled room temperatures, and restricted movement within the unit to maintain sterility.
Premature babies who stabilize are later moved to specialized pre-term rooms and Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) wards, where mothers stay with their babies while providing continuous breastfeeding and skin-to-skin care until the infants attain the required discharge weight.
“We are heavy on exclusive breastfeeding. Mothers come in every few hours to feed or express milk for their children. When the babies attain around 1.9 kilograms, we discharge them,” Dr. Musoma added.
The unit also contains an isolation room for abandoned babies and referrals from other facilities requiring close observation before joining the general wards.
Nurse Virginia Njoki said all newborns admitted into the unit undergo immediate assessment and monitoring, including blood sugar testing for premature babies at risk of hypoglycemia.
Clinical Officer Hillary Bosuben noted that oxygen saturation levels are also checked immediately to determine whether respiratory support is required.
The neonatal improvements are part of wider county investments in healthcare infrastructure aimed at reducing infant mortality and improving the quality of maternal and child healthcare services across Kiambu County.
By Rose Muthoni
