Shirley Ogalo, 24, has always been a high-flyer if her grades in school are anything to go by.
When she completed her high school education at Lugulu Girls High School in 2016, she emerged as the top student, with an A of 83 points.
Then, she wanted to fly high, literally, as an air hostess, but her mother and teachers thought she would make a brilliant doctor. After a year of attending the Equity Leaders Program for young performing students, she joined the University of Nairobi to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Dental Surgery.
When she first stepped into class in October 2017, her lecturers bombarded her with general medicine information, as she and her friends wondered why they wouldn’t just go directly into talking about teeth.
“They would say that teeth will not walk into the clinic, but a human being carrying them would. Even though I didn’t know what the scope of learning would entail, I at least knew that people love their smiles, and some would be insecure when they have a dental problem.
I wanted to be the person giving such people a second chance at getting their smiles back and restoring their self-confidence,” says Ms Ogalo.
“The first year was very challenging. In High school, I used to be a top performer. On campus, everyone was a top performer, and one had to work extra hard. We couldn’t sleep because if you do then you are going to fail. At some point I thought I wasn’t going to make it. I called my mother and told her I didn’t think that was the course for me, but she encouraged me to push on,” she explains.
Years later, she completed her studies, and in July 2023, was informed that she had passed her exams and was confirmed as a dental surgeon. She was elated, went home happy and relieved that the toughest journey was finally over.
In November last year, she and her colleagues voted for internship centres, and she was posted at Dental School within the University of Nairobi.
However, she could not begin her internship until she received a posting order from the Ministry of Health.
The posting, which should have happened around November, has stretched into eight months now, forcing her to take to the streets to attend her first-ever protest.
Shirley Ogalo, 24, during the Nairobi street protests in Nairobi on 29th February 2024 to pressurise the government to post intern doctors. She a holds a Bachelor’s degree in Dental Surgery.
Photo credit: POOL
“Most of the time, I’m home. I wake up, eat, watch movies, do some chores, eat, sleep, and repeat. It is frustrating because when you are in the house with nothing to do, all you do is wonder what to do with your future. I would constantly talk to my high schoolmates who would tell me how they were already establishing their careers or starting families and thriving. I would look at myself as a top performer and wonder what would happen with my life. It was depressing,” says Ogalo.
“The frustration got even worse after graduation. We thought we would be posted in February 2024, and were so excited waiting for February. That’s when we started going out for demonstrations. As it is we are still demonstrating to be posted,” says Ms Ogalo.
“Going to the streets for the government to hear us is disheartening and sad because this is something the government knows has to happen. As of now, I don’t know what I will be doing a year from now.
The Health CS’ plan to do away with the payment of interns is also disheartening. In a profession where we are supported by parents, it is an opportunity to relieve them and fend for ourselves. The payment also comes in handy because we are busy during internships, sometimes with classes and exams, with no time to do locums for extra income,” she adds.
Ms Ogalo recalls that on the day of the protests that saw the KMPDU Secretary General injured, they saw two school buses passing by and talked about the possibility of some students in those buses wanting to be doctors. The thought of the obstacles they would face made them sigh. She says she wouldn’t advise anyone to pursue the medical profession.
“I think the reason medics are going out there is because we feel we are not appreciated in the country. When we talk to our senior colleagues they tell us to look outside the country or job opportunities when we are done with our internship, because there is no hope of things getting better.
Shirley Ogalo at her graduation in October 2023 from the University of Nairobi with a Bachelor of Science in Dental Surgery.
Photo credit: Home Library
We are not even safe protesting in the streets. During the recent demonstrations, I was right behind the KMPDU secretary general who was injured. The teargas canister landed a few metres behind me. Our eyes were hurting, we were sharing water and holding each other up. The experience was bad. Is this what I have to go through every time for my voice to be heard? I think it is very wrong.”
A total of 1,210 medical interns are yet to be posted, despite the internship policy stating that they should be posted 30 days after graduation.
They include 849 medical officer interns (those with Bachelor’s degrees in medicine and surgery), 72 dental officer interns (those with Bachelor’s degrees in dental surgery) and 289 pharmacist interns (those with Bachelor’s degrees in pharmacy).
