Skip to main content

Medicines in Kenya: Cure or Poison?

This Drug available at most hospitals here is prescribed under
restriction in the United States. The medicine is often
prescribed in non-deserving situations in the country.
Many of us do not like medicines or visiting health centres, not that we have a choice. When one is sick, they have to visit a health centre. It's at the health centres that one is given medicines, drugs that are expected to cure the ailment.

Prevention, we are told, is better than cure. For this reason, some of us will visit the health centres for preventive drugs - maybe we are a malaria prone area and are trying to limit our exposure to it.

Looking at the health sector in Kenya, it is far from reaching the health for all status. The country , like many of it's neighbours, faces an acute shortage of doctors. The number has steadily been rising over the years as the government tries to train more doctors to bridge the shortfall. However, bridging the shortfall has been made difficult by many countries that are ready to pay a premium for Kenyan Doctors, hence luring them away from the country.


To date, the country does not have enough doctors to serve in all it's public hospitals and health centres. I remember a few years ago that the nearest public hospital to my home had only one doctor available for specific days in a week.

Public hospitals in Kenya however still remain costly and beyond the reach of several Kenyans. Having a few friends and relatives working in the nearest hospital, the informed me that patients were often brought to die in the hospital - the curable ailments were often left to advance to a point they could not be cured. Residents often prefer visiting witch doctors as they believed that some of the ailments are a result of witchcraft.

As the country's economy continues to improve, more people are able to afford to visit hospitals. This  has resulted in the emergence of another crisis as  the effects of qualified shortage of staff bites in.

Clinical medical officers and nurses have taken over the role of doctors. Doctors say that most of the reported cases of Malaria and Typhoid consist of patients not necessarily suffering from the diseases. The diagnosis of these diseases has been hampered by under equipped labs and higher costs required for  proper tests.


Typhoid and Malaria: less common that taken to be
Doctors say that  typhoid patients require to be admitted and therefore all those 'typhoid' patients walking around can not be suffering from the disease.

Pharmaceutical companies have been quick to cash on this disparity. They know that most Kenyans will visit a health institution where they are less likely to see a   qualified doctor, and will therefore be misdiagnosed for these diseases. The misdiagnosis then presents an opportunity for them to market and supply drugs for these ailments.

Powerful drugs that go beyond healing
The problem comes in that some of the drugs prescribed are often very powerful and controversial. I discovered this recently when I visited South B Hospital where a 'doctor' with the help of a lab test discovered that I was suffering from 'typhoid'. I was then prescribed an antibiotic by the name of "Levox ".

About a week into the prescription, other new symptoms, characterised by body and joint pains emerged. At this point , I visited the more costly Aga Khan Hospital - thankfully, health insurance at work was footing the bill. More tests here revealed that I was not suffering from typhoid. The doctor advised hat they could not determine what I was initially suffering from as the powerful drugs I had been prescribed would have cured it by then. The symptoms I was suffering from were probably as a result of the antibiotics, and I should stop taking them.

A Google search revealed that Levofloxacin, the active ingredient in Levox is restricted in the United States and comes with two 'Blackbox' warnings. In fact, the drug has even led to one of the manufacturers been sued for damages. The drug is said to cause muscle tendon damage and will lead to rupturing of tendons for several patients, especially the elderly ones. The tendon damage usually requires corrective surgery. Even worse, the pains and probability of tendon rupture will last for several months after one stops medication.

Levofloxacin based drugs and other counterparts usually have several major side effects  that patients should be advised against.It is recommended that any patient experiencing the symptoms should immediately stop taking the drugs and seek further medical advice. This does not happen in Africa where both health professionals and patients are barely aware of such issues.

Levofloxacin is usually prescribed to Anthrax patients and other hard-to-treat bacteria.

Most patients are usually very trusting of modern medicine and are not aware that they come with side effects. Few are even aware that various drugs will place stress on the kidneys, especially common over the counter creams. Prolonged use of such medications continues weakening the kidney which treats them as toxics that need to be rid off the body.

Multi-drug resistant diseases
Another result of the theatrics of our medical sector has been multi drug resistance in several common diseases, such as malaria. When the government's intention to allow over the counter use of malaria drugs, again, pharmaceuticals end up as the biggest beneficiaries. Patients buy the drugs at will, even when probably suffering from exhaustion, and take incomplete doses. Some are prescribed by friends who have become experts at prescription of over the counter medicines, with no clear instructions on dosages. It does not help that pharmacies are run by non-qualified personnel who also have no idea about the dosages and effects of such. Over several years, the diseases soon adapt to be resistant to common drugs while pharmaceutics sell drugs to healthy people. Soon, the drugs have to be replaced by even more costly drugs as the disease become resistant, presenting another opportunity for pharmaceuticals to make higher mark ups.

It's time the government steeped in to stop the circus. Crack down on unqualified personnel in the health sector and come up with stringent rules on use of drugs. The public also need to be educated on proper drug use. Drugs are not candy.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Nairobi's Top 4 Texas Brisket Places Reviewed and Ranked

Brisket on a bed of roast vegetables with barbecue sauce at Texas Brisket, Kikuyu  This review has been updated after a number of you suggested I try the brisket at County2County.  What's the best place to have Brisket in Nairobi? What's even brisket?  Brisket is one of the toughest cuts in a cow, from around the belly. It is so tough that it has to be smoked for about 16 hours to tenderise. But that there, is the catch.  12 to 16 hours later, it is the most flavourful and softest cut you will ever have. So full of flavour and so soft you can pick it apart with your fingers.  However, due to the long cooking time involved, only a few places offer brisket in Nairobi.  The best so far is Texas Brisket which is located within Kikuyu Railway station.  They do the meat for a proper 16 hours, and will usually have a fatty or non-fatty portion. The fatty portions are more tasty. A 500 gram serving goes for KSh. 900 and a 1 KG order comes with a serving of free fries. Their brisket has

Kenyan products: The art of punishing your consumer

This post was written in 2011. Facts may have and indeed have changed - but the conclusion has not.  Dormans instant coffee tastes better than Sasini instant coffee. Ramtons electronics are manufactured for Kenya's Hypermart Limited, yet maintain a high product quality Peanut butter used to taste so good, but you could not afford it on the pocket money that you got back in school. A few years later, you have your first real job and your first "disposable" income. You buy your first real tub of peanut butter, probably the first in your life. You feel proud that Dominion peanut butter is manufactured in Ruiru, a town that you visited in your campus days to withdraw your pocket money, it was the nearest bank ATM to your campus.  This was before Equity bank became a mainstream bank and decided to open an ATM in your campus, and before M-Pesa meant that you

Best and Most Durable Highway SUV Tyres

Buying tyres is a dilemma - how do you get the best tyres without spending much more than is necessary?  If that's your dillema, well, you have come to the right place. We will look at tyres that are at the sweetspot of durability, performance and affordability especially for SUVs.  You'll find that most of my top picks are Asian brands. These tend to last longer and are more affordable. European brands are engineered more for comfort and ride quality. So if comfort is your top concern when buying tyres, I would recommend Pirelli and Michelin.  1. Otani   Otani is a little known tyre brand made in Dubai. It however rates quite highly for durability and hardiness, with most of its tyres coming in 'Extra Load' specification. Extra Load tyres are designed if you carry a lot of weight or if you do a lot of towing. Even if you don't, it means you end up with more hardy tyres than your manufacturer recommends. Propelling Otani to the top of my ranking is th

Beers in Kenya: A sober opinion

Note: This is a dated post and has since been mostly passed by events. SAB Miller beers including Castle and Peroni are no longer widely available in Kenya after their exist. Sirville Brewery was bought out by Brew Bistro before being permanently shut in a tax dispute. Kenya is a land of milk, honey, beaches and taxes. I have penned, or is typed, a newer post here .  Peroni - One of the best beers in Kenya. Did a taste of canned and bottled Italian, and bottled Tanzanian I like the tangy flavour and body in Tanzanian Peroni. The can is close. Heineken drinkers will like the Italian one.  I have had a short beer swigging stint in my life. It has however been long enough for me to share my opinion of Kenyan beer. Interestingly, over the course of sharing such opinions with other drunkards connoisseurs,  I have found that we all have different views as to what beer is the best, which one makes you too drunk, or which one gives one free, extra hangover for every hangover you get

Kenya Power customers suffer from Ksh 0.5 billion faulty prepaid meters

1st Phase Actaris prepaid meters , which work well Kenya Power is a famous company in Kenya, one which draws what my colleagues in media will call "mixed reactions". While those in urban areas such as Nairobi regard Kenya Power as a very unreliable firm, I have heard of villages in rural areas where blackouts go unreported for even 3 days . To the rural people, recent electrification means that at least they get to get electricity for some days, which is better than no electricity. In urban areas, the story is not any different. Around Imara Daima along Mombasa Road, power is mostly reliable, with blackouts been few in a week, and even at times been less than 10 in a month. In other places in the city, blackouts are a daily occurrence, and in some places, the blackouts are more than meals, counting two teas , breakfast, lunch and dinner. Another aspect about Kenya Power is the prepaid meters, which like the firm, are equally loved and hated. Ever since I became prou