Susan Kihika Breaks Silence After Viral Nakuru Hospital Images Spark Bed Shortage Claims
Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika has responded after viral images showing dozens of people sleeping on benches outside Nakuru County Teaching and Referral Hospital sparked widespread concern over the state of healthcare services in the county.
The photographs, which circulated widely on social media, prompted claims that patients were being forced to spend the night outside the hospital due to a shortage of beds and overcrowding at the county’s main referral facility.
However, in a statement shared on Wednesday, July 29, Governor Kihika dismissed the claims, insisting that those captured in the images were not patients but relatives who had accompanied loved ones admitted to the hospital.
According to the governor, many of the individuals had escorted patients who arrived late at night from distant parts of the county. After the patients were assessed and admitted, the relatives opted to remain at the hospital until morning because travelling back home during the night was difficult or unsafe.
“These are not patients. They are relatives who bring patients late in the night. Once the patients are attended to and admitted, those from far wait for morning to be able to commute back home,” Kihika wrote.
The governor argued that the situation was not new, recalling a similar incident that generated intense public debate last year. She said hospital security personnel had attempted to ask relatives who had spent the night at the facility to leave, but the move attracted widespread criticism from members of the public.
“Last year, a video was trending where a guard was trying to ask such relatives to leave; it drew massive criticism on these streets, you were all up in arms, raising a storm; we let them be,” she added.
Despite the governor’s explanation, the viral photographs have reignited debate over the condition of healthcare services in Nakuru, with many Kenyans questioning whether the county’s referral hospital is struggling under increasing patient demand.
The controversy comes against the backdrop of longstanding concerns about the county’s health sector. In recent months, residents and healthcare stakeholders have raised alarms over staff shortages, congestion, and the growing pressure on public hospitals.
Earlier this year, Nakuru County Teaching and Referral Hospital came under public scrutiny following reports of an acute shortage of doctors, with claims that a single doctor was at times responsible for attending to hundreds of patients in a day. The reports fueled concerns over patient waiting times and the strain facing frontline medical workers.
Similar concerns have also been raised at Naivasha Sub-County Referral Hospital, where residents complained of congestion and limited capacity as demand for healthcare services continued to rise.
The latest public outcry also comes just weeks after Governor Kihika appeared before the Senate County Public Accounts Committee on July 2 to defend her administration’s decision to close Nakuru War Memorial Hospital.
During the tense session, several senators—including Nakuru Senator Tabitha Keroche—questioned the county government’s handling of the closure, warning that shutting down the facility could increase pressure on other public hospitals, particularly Nakuru County Teaching and Referral Hospital.
Kihika, however, maintained that adequate alternative healthcare facilities were available and defended her administration’s management of the county’s health services.
While the governor insists the viral images have been misinterpreted, the incident has once again placed Nakuru’s healthcare system under the national spotlight, with residents continuing to demand improvements in staffing, infrastructure, and access to quality medical care.
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