A total of 51 nurses from Nyeri have left to attend the 67th International Annual Scientific Conference and AGM at the Grand Royal Swiss Hotel, Kisumu.
While flagging off the team Tuesday, Nyeri Deputy Governor David Warui Kinanire lauded the medics for their crucial role in provision of health services to the county and urged them to exploit the conference as a benchmarking event to improve healthcare in the county.
Kinanire noted that nurses remained an integral cog in addressing known and emerging health conditions in any country and therefore the need to put them on a continuous improvement training in order to hone their skills in addressing societal health challenges.
“I extend my heartfelt appreciation to our nurses, the backbone of our health system, who tirelessly shoulder immense responsibilities to ensure that our people receive compassionate, efficient, and quality care. In both urban and rural facilities, their dedication continues to make recovery possible and comfort attainable. They are truly a goldmine in our healthcare sector and deserve every ounce of recognition,” said Kinanire during the flagging off ceremony.
The theme for this year’s fete which will run from October 29 to October 31 is “Nursing Power to Change the World: A Call to Transformative Healthcare”.
In 2023, Kagumo Teachers Training College played host to the 65th nurses conference that brought together more than 2,000 nurses from the 47 counties.
The theme for the year was “Our nurses, our future; addressing climate change for sustainable universal coverage”.
The Deputy Governor challenged the departing team to exploit every lesson learnt during the conference in improving their way of doing things once they reported back to their duty stations.
“As they head to Kisumu, I wish them a safe journey and a fruitful conference, one filled with new knowledge, collaboration, and innovation. The County Government of Nyeri remains steadfast in ensuring that every opportunity for growth is embraced for the benefit of our people,” he stated.
National Nurses Association of Kenya (NNAK) Chair (Nyeri Branch) Thomas Kabanya said they were elated at the prospect of attending the conference which he described as a pivotal moment for the nursing fraternity.
Kabanya lauded Dr Mutahi Kahiga’s Government for investing heavily in the provision of health care in the county and pledged to continue rallying nurses towards working for the residents’ welfare and ensuring that they have access to quality health care.
“We are grateful to our Governor Dr Mutahi Kahiga for granting us an opportunity to represent our county in this scientific conference. We believe this is an ideal eye opener for us and one that will go a long way in assisting us make improvements in providing health services to the people. We also thank the County Government for advertising an additional 43 positions for nurses which we believe will reduce the existing gap of 1,000 nurses needed against the current figure of 862,” he told KNA while speaking on phone from Kisumu.
As of 2024, the Nursing Council of Kenya (NCK) estimates had put the number of registered nurses in the country at 81,564.
An earlier data from 2020 by NCK had indicated the total health workforce in the country at 189,932, with the Kenya Registered Community Health Nurse occupation being the largest at 109,659 workers, which includes a sub-category of registered community health nurses (71,539) and enrolled community health nurses (38,120).
However, the 2025 State of the World’s Nursing Report by the World Health Organization and the International Council of Nurses, put the number of registered nurses in Kenya at 125,499 up from just 40,000 in 2013.
This marked an increase of 85,499 nurses over twelve years, with the country graduating an average of 7,125 nurses every year.
By Samuel Maina
