Plight of cancer patients forced to spend nights on cold hospital floors
The entrance of Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital along Kisumu -Kakamega Highway.
What you need to know:
- Despite President William Ruto’s announcement increasing the SHA benefit package from Sh550,000 to Sh800,000, effective December 1, 2025, the declaration remains a mere promise to patients.
Nancy* walked into Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) for her second chemotherapy session on August 20, 2025, looking forward to smooth service delivery.
Like many cancer patients visiting the facility, her plan was to attend her medical appointment and return home to Siaya before dusk.
Upon arrival, the cervical cancer patient was asked to scan her fingers to access medical services.
What was supposed to be a successful day culminated in long waiting hours, with Naomi forced to spend a night on the cold facility corridors, courtesy of the Social Health Authority (SHA) system hitches.
The system, she was informed, was slow, and the hospital management could do nothing about it.
"I tried to scan my fingerprints repeatedly, but the system was not working properly," says Nancy, who kept trying her luck until late in the evening.
That evening, one of the hospital staff directed her to return the following morning to start the exercise over again.
Nancy explains that due to financial constraints, travelling back home to Siaya was not an option.
"I joined other patients who had similar biometric verification challenges and spent the night in the cold corridors and at the gate," she says.
She was among 10 other patients who had experienced a similar challenge at the facility.
The following day, the process was no different. Nancy was asked to keep checking for any developments throughout the day.
"By midday, the process was finally a success. I was directed to the hospital's pharmacy to collect my drugs," says Nancy, adding that she was forced to
purchase most of the medication from a private pharmacy as they were out of stock.
Since then, she says her trips to the regional referral facility have remained frustrating, with the slow system making the experience even more taxing. On each appointment, she is forced to spend a night or two at the hospital gates awaiting access to services.
A number of patients, she says, are forced to wait up to two days before they can access care, while those from farther away must seek accommodation.
"Those with relatives from around are always lucky. The rest of us are forced to spend cold nights within the facility premises due to lack of accommodation," she says.
Also affected is Ochieng*, a cancer patient who says his efforts to access chemotherapy sessions have also been hampered by the technology hitches. This, he says, forces him to travel to Kisumu a day before his appointment to begin the follow-up process, often spending the night at a relative's place.
"Imagine the stress of watching others get cleared to go home while you are told to wait for IT experts to fix the system. My body does not wait," says Ochieng, who hails from Homa Bay.
Toward the end of last year, Jane,* diagnosed with breast cancer at the regional facility, was forced to seek an alternative healthcare provider due to the unavailability of drugs.
She explains that at the facility, she was informed that Palbociclib, a drug used for her breast cancer treatment, was rarely supplied due to its high cost.
Instead, the facility referred her to Nairobi Hospital, but her medication now comes at a cost.
Each month, Jane travels to Nairobi in search of the drug, which she obtains after paying a Sh4,000 consultation fee.
"Luckily, I am able to get the drug for free since the facility is carrying out research on the medication," she says, adding that her main concerns are the monthly transport costs, a day's accommodation, and the consultation fee.
During an interview, a member of a cancer support group at the institution tells Healthy Nation that pre-authorisation delays remain one of the major challenges patients face.
The delays, she says, have seen some patients spend more than two days at the facility, while others end up breaking treatment.
"We only have two pre-authorisation machines for cancer patients at the facility. One of the major challenges, however, is that we have more patients coming in, and the machines are not enough to cater for all of them.
“On most occasions, out of more than 20 patients, the facility is only able to approve eight, while only three may be lucky to undergo the procedure."
The rest, she says, are forced to seek alternative accommodation as they wait for their turn.
The support group member further notes that cancer drugs at the facility sometimes run out of stock for a month, leading some patients to discontinue treatment.
She also states that the referral hospital rarely purchases expensive chemotherapy drugs and often ends up referring patients to other facilities.
"One of the major causes of cancer patient deaths in the region is the inability to continue routine medication due either to lack of drugs or pre-authorisation challenges.”
Despite President William Ruto’s announcement increasing the SHA benefit package from Sh550,000 to Sh800,000, effective December 1, 2025, the declaration remains a mere promise to patients.
According to the support group member, the impact has left patients unable to attend all chemotherapy sessions unless they pay out of pocket.
"We also encouraged our patients to use the chronic illness fund to sustain them, but not a single request has gone through. The facility says they have yet to receive funding for it.”
To cushion patients, she now calls on the facility to maintain a constant drug supply, seal gaps in system failures, and provide alternative accommodation for those forced to stay longer due to pre-authorisation delays.
Alfred Onyango, the insurance in-charge at JOOTRH, acknowledged the SHA system hitches but said the technological challenges have since been resolved.
He said that apart from fixing internet issues and purchasing more computers, SHA has also reinforced the downtime system, allowing for smoother service delivery.
"Initially, we had patients staying at the facility for more than a day. At the moment, the system is up and our clients are being sorted," said Mr Onyango.
He further stated that the facility currently does not offer accommodation to patients affected by SHA hitches, except for those seeking inpatient services.
While the issue arises frequently in meetings, he noted that the facility might consider it in the future due to the client influx.
"On the President's directive, we have been in communication with the Nairobi SHA offices. They indicated that funds are likely to be released in the second week of March to implement the increment," he said.
Mr Onyango also refuted claims that the chronic illness fund remains inaccessible at the facility.
According to the insurance in-charge, while the SHA cover limit for patients is up to Sh400,000, clients can access an additional Sh150,000 from the chronic illness fund.
"The fund applies to chronic illness patients, including those accessing oncology and kidney dialysis services," he said, adding that oncology patients are likely to deplete their cover earlier due to the high cost of chemotherapy drugs.
-Names changed to protect the identity of patients
