The JOOTRH in Kisumu scales up medical infrastructure to manage health care demand

By Correspondent

The Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) in Kisumu has significantly scaled up its medical infrastructure following increasing health care demand after the facility was transitioned into a Level 6A national teaching and referral hospital.

The hospital was formally elevated to a Level 6 national referral hospital in June 2025 and structured as a Category 5 parastatal to serve Western Kenya and neighboring regions.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr. Joshua Clinton Okise said they are placing all necessary measures to ensure that the facility is well equipped with medical infrastructure to meet its upgraded standard.

“We have been upgrading our medical infrastructure through purchasing of specialised operation machinery and laboratory testing equipment that will be key in solving health challenges that affected our people,” said Dr. Okise.

In specialised surgical & critical care, the hospital has received 92 distinct line items of ultra-modern surgical and critical care equipment (including operating tables, surgical lights, anaesthesia machines, and ICU monitoring systems) supplied by Sunview Medipro International Limited.

Dr. Okise also disclosed that they have added multiple hemodiafiltration (HDF) and online dialysis machines, bringing total renal capacity to 13 units to improve toxin removal and patient outcomes

“In August 2026, JOOTRH successfully launched its open-heart (cardiothoracic) surgery program alongside ongoing neurosurgery, sickle-cell automated red blood cell exchange at the Victoria Annex, and same-day cancer biopsy services,” explained Dr. Okise.

The facility has also renovated and expanded its regional accident and emergency department and integrated into the national 922 emergency ambulance dispatch system.

The facility’s officials have also announced plans to establish a 50-bed inpatient unit to expand access to specialised care in Kisumu and the wider Nyanza region.

The proposed unit will have 25 beds for male patients and 25 for female patients, strengthening the hospital’s capacity to manage mental health conditions requiring admission.

JOOTRH director of Clinical Services Dr Paul Mitei said the planned facility would improve access to specialised mental healthcare in the region.

He called for routine mental health screening to promote early detection, timely intervention and appropriate referrals.

The clinic was unveiled at the hospital’s Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) Centre during World Mental Health Day celebrations on October 10.

It will offer psychiatric assessment and treatment, individual and family counselling, psychotherapy, medication management, child and adolescent mental health services, substance-use treatment and rehabilitation.

Other services will include crisis intervention, suicide-prevention support, trauma and bereavement counselling, psychosocial rehabilitation, community outreach and confidential counselling for healthcare workers.