Kenya’s top health unions have condemned the rising wave of violence targeting healthcare workers and citizens, warning that the attacks pose a serious threat to the country’s already fragile healthcare system.
In a strongly worded joint statement shared on X on Friday, July 4, 2025, the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO), the Kenya Union of Nutritionists and Dietitians (KUNAD), and the Kenya National Union of Medical Laboratory Officers (KNUMLO) expressed outrage over what they termed a growing pattern of violent crackdowns against medics.
“While Kenya continues to witness a troubling rise in violent crackdowns, increasingly marked by the use of hired goons and acts of vandalism, one critical dimension remains dangerously overlooked: the devastating impact on #healthcare systems and frontline workers,” the statement reads.
Kwale incident
The unions pointed to the recent disruption of a peaceful doctors’ assembly in Kwale County as emblematic of a disturbing trend, where medical professionals exercising their right to assemble are met with unlawful force and intimidation.
“The recent violent disruption of a peaceful doctors’ assembly in Kwale County is not just an isolated incident; it is part of a dangerous pattern. Medical professionals had gathered lawfully to discuss matters affecting the profession and were met with unlawful force,” the unions stated in their joint statement.
Strained healthcare system
While acknowledging the broader rise in political unrest, the unions painted a stark picture of how escalating violence is overwhelming Kenya’s already strained healthcare infrastructure.
They warned that injuries from protests and violent crackdowns are flooding emergency units and hospital wards, placing an additional burden on health workers who are already grappling with scarce resources and chronic understaffing.
“The injuries inflicted during these protests are not just statistics. They arrive at the doors of our hospitals, flooding emergency units and wards into the hands of health workers already burdened by scarce resources and chronic understaffing,” the statement noted.
The health bodies described the current situation as more than a security concern, calling it a full-blown public health emergency, arguing that this violence is eroding trust in healthcare systems, disrupting continuity of treatment, and compromising emergency response capabilities.
“It is not merely a security concern or a matter of broken bones and bleeding wounds; it is a public health emergency that disrupts not only treatment but trust, a collapse in continuity of care that erodes emergency preparedness and undermines our collective well-being,” the statement continued.
The unions called for urgent intervention from all branches of government to ensure the safety of medical workers and protect the nation’s healthcare infrastructure.
“We must not wait until the health system buckles entirely under the weight of unchecked violence. Urgent, coordinated action is required, not just from the Ministry of Health but from all organs of state power, to stop the violence and protect Kenya’s fragile health infrastructure,” the statement concluded.
