The government of Kenya, through the Ministry of Health, has launched the Rehabilitative Services and Assistive Technology Strategy 2022-2026, Disability Medical Assessment and Categorization Guidelines 2022, and the ATscale Project.
During the launch, Engineer Peter Tum, the Principal Secretary of the State Department for Medical Services, represented by Dr. Zeinab Gura, Acting Director Health Care Services, emphasized the need for extensive healthcare services to support the increasing number of Kenyans living with disabilities, which is estimated to be 0.9 million or 2.2% of the population.
"We are excited to see the impact these initiatives will have on the lives of Kenyans living with disabilities, and we remain committed to providing oversight and guidance to ensure their success," he said.
The Rehabilitative Services and Assistive Technology Strategy 2022-2026, developed in collaboration with Clinton Health Access Initiative and other stakeholders, envisions increased access to care up to the primary healthcare and community levels by developing infrastructure, building human resource capacity, and providing the equipment needed for rehabilitation services.
The Disability Medical Assessment and Categorization Guidelines were developed to guide the appropriate and timely identification and categorization of disabilities. The guidelines bring services closer to Kenyans by decentralizing the validation of disability assessment to the County Directors of Health.
The ATscale Project, a three-year project geared towards supporting capacity building, strengthening the supply chain for assistive technology, sustainable financing, development of policy and guidelines, enhancing infrastructure, data, and systems, enhancing demand generation, and program coordination, will also be implemented.
The PS said the Ministry of Health is committed to prioritizing the provision of rehabilitative services by reviewing the harmonized benefit package to include the rehabilitation package, developing the list of essential assistive technology, and streamlining the training of human resources for rehabilitation services.
"We are excited to see the positive impact these initiatives will have on the lives of Kenyans living with disabilities," said Eng. Tum
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