Kenyatta National Hospital spearheading specialized treatment and stigma reduction for patients with STIs

By Steven Arwa

When one hears about Sexually Transmitted Infections the first thing that comes to mind is HIV/AIDS and Immunodeficiency Syndrome, but the world today has greatly evolved and HIV/AIDS is not the only disease that can be transmitted sexually. There are other numerous sexually transmitted infections.

Our focus will be on other sexually transmitted bacterial infections and in this case Gonorrhea. In December 2022, super gonorrhea trended on different social media platforms invoking intriguing conversations among the public, most very debatable but also raising questions concerning how people perceive the whole concept of Gonorrhea and super Gonorrhea.

Newsline got an opportunity to have a sit down with Dr. Phoebe Juma, Head of the Infectious Disease Unit at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH). (Live video feed on Facebook can be accessed at: https://www. facebook.com/KenyattaNationalHospital/videos/5289544171148771/?flite=scwspnss ) where she got to expound more in detail on the trending super gonorrhea bacterial infection, how it comes about, how it spreads, is prevented, and is treated once a person tests positive.

While this was well covered by Dr. Juma another question arose from the interview concerning whenever a person wants to come for testing or when they are aware of their predicament and want to come for treatment at KNH, where do they start? Newsline felt that this subject needed more clarification and therefore went out in search of more information.

To any person visiting the Hospital for the first time, being able to locate where they can get the right services in terms of testing and treatment. Stationed at the clinics section Ms. Joan Macharia, a Marketing and Communication officer at the Hospital who has vast experience through her interactions with clients over the years, said part of her duties involve working with clients to try to help them reach their areas of destination.

“But it becomes a huge challenge when they are not truthful or forthcoming in terms of providing genuine information therefore in some instances leading to cases of misdirection. If such visitors do not seek other relevant help from our various customer care points, they normally spend a lot of time going round and round the Hospital eventually giving up, all this mostly due to fear of being stigmatized,” said Ms. Macharia.

According to medical experts like Dr. Dorothy Aywak Acting Head of Unit KNH Comprehensive Care Centre (CCC) and Mr. M. Gikonyo, Senior Nursing Officer at Clinic 18, whenever one comes to KNH for the first time, for the case of adults they undergo comprehensive testing at our Accident and Emergency Department which is open 24 hours a day where they will get appropriate medical assistance from a Clinical Officer deployed by the CCC Unit.

If found positive they are immediately put under the right medication. When it comes to the youth, KNH has designated an appropriate and adolescent-friendly center (KNH Youth Centre) located on the ground floor of the tower block and is open every day from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm. At the unit, youth are provided with free testing services, and if found positive, are referred to the Accident and Emergencies (A&E) for treatment. This is done free of charge to reduce instances where youth might shy away from treatment due to fear of not being able to afford the payment.

It is also vital to understand that whenever a person reports to the A&E and tests positive for other medical complications brought about by Gonorrhea such as infertility, necessary laid-down procedures will be followed. First, they will be directed to the appropriate specialized medical clinic such as the Medical Outpatient Clinics or General Outpatient Clinics where they can receive the much-needed critical specialized treatment.

Therefore, KNH through its Clinics like CCC has continued to expand its services, making them easily available as much as possible to patients and this has seen successful disbursement of medical personnel to all critical units like Clinics 18, 66, A&E, Wards, and the Blood Transfusion Unit. This has greatly helped in early identification processes hence allowing medical personnel the capacity to provide the right treatment to patients.

According to Mr. Isaac M. Njubi Human Resource Administrator at CCC clinic, over the years advancement in technology and adoption of new ways of operations being used are providing cutting-edge approaches to tackling emerging challenges and allowing advancement in ways of handling patients that take into account their mental health.

Issues concerning fear of stigmatization can be tackled by taking into account the patient’s state of mental health. As Ms. Macharia had stated and also Dr. Phoebe Juma in her Facebook video interview, one of the many reasons why the issue of stigmatization is at the forefront of matters concerning STIs, is fear, fear of being judged and discriminated against.

But one thing stands out, one cannot get the much-needed medical assistance if they are not ready or willing to ask the right questions therefore, KNH through its units like the Youth Centre and Comprehensive Care Center is working hard to create an environment where patients and visitors can feel not judged but rather well received hence going a long way in reducing fear and stigmatization among clients visiting the hospital in search of medical services.