Equity Afia to be rolled in all Counties by the year 2023,Says CEO Equity Bank.
An Employee of the Equity Afia attends to a client in one of the clinics established in the country by Equity Group Holdings plans to have such clinics in all the 47 counties by the year 2023-Photo By Courtesy.
By Dickson Odhiambo.
August 8,2018
Equity Afia to be rolled in all Counties by the year 2023,Says CEO Equity Bank.
Equity
Group Holdings is set to open clinics outside Nairobi and Thika as it
seeks their presence in all 47 counties over the next five years.
The
Chief Executive Officer of Equity Bank Dr.James Mwangi says the bank
intends to open one health center dubbed 'Equity Afia' in every country
in the next five years.
He says the bank is currently supporting five clinics in Thika, Buru Buru, Ongata Rongai, Kayole and Kawangware.
He
says the health business is run as a franchised network under the
bank's social arm Equity Group Foundation (EGF) which offers affordable
and high quality healthcare.
"The
lender does not own the clinics, but offers support services like loans
from an entrepreneurship fund and bulk buying of medicine and equipment
for doctors wishing to set up such centers. EGF hired a management team
made of
professionals like a chief nursing officer, chief laboratory
technologist, finance manager and an IT manager to oversee operations of
the network of health facilities,"Dr.Mwangi says.
He
adds that the roll-out plan will break barriers that the general
population have to accessing quality comprehensive primary health-care
services.
He
says Equity Afia have
adopted a very affordable pricing structure for their quality services
and drugs with outpatient consultation with a medical doctor starting
from Sh. 500.
The
push for a presence of Equity Afia in the 47 counties comes as the
country face a shortage of doctors with specialized skills in far-flung
hospitals, forcing patients to pay to travel Nairobi City.
Kenya's
doctor-to-patient ratio is one to 16,000, according to official data,
far below a recommendation of the UN World Health Organization of one to
1,000.
The Kenya Government has prioritized attainment of Universal Health Coverage
(UHC) to reduce the expenditure burden that a majority of Kenyans incur while seeking healthcare.
Ends.
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