Kihika Revives, Completes & Commissions Stalled Elburgon Maternity Project

By Staff Writer

A health project in Elburgon that stalled in 2021 has finally been completed, giving mothers access to a modern maternity wing designed to improve privacy, skilled deliveries and emergency care at Elburgon Level 4 Hospital.

Governor Susan Kihika today officially commissioned the new Mother and Baby Wing, saying the facility would give women a safer, more dignified and comfortable environment during childbirth while strengthening maternal and newborn services in the area.

The state-of-the-art wing has 30 maternity beds, 10 baby cots, three resuscitaires and two delivery beds, expanding the hospital’s capacity to handle deliveries and respond to complications more effectively.

“This new maternity wing is about dignity, safety and timely care for every mother who comes to Elburgon Level 4 Hospital to bring new life into the world,” Governor Kihika said.

The facility serves a catchment population of about 13,000 people and is expected to reduce pressure on nearby hospitals by bringing essential maternity services closer to residents of Elburgon and surrounding areas.

According to county figures, Elburgon Level 4 Hospital currently handles about 120 normal deliveries every month and between 15 and 20 caesarean section deliveries within the same period.

The hospital is also expected to manage about 30 emergency obstetric cases and nearly 296 post-abortion care cases annually, making the wing a critical investment in reproductive healthcare.

The county boss said the upgraded maternity unit will improve newborn survival by promoting skilled deliveries and ensuring faster access to emergency obstetric care when mothers develop complications before, during or after delivery.

The project, under the previous administration, is among several stalled and delayed health infrastructure initiatives that Governor Kihika’s administration has revived and completed to improve service delivery across Nakuru County.

Kihika said the completion reflected her administration’s wider plan to revive incomplete projects and align health infrastructure with the needs of communities that depend on public facilities for essential services.

“This project had stalled, but we revived and completed it because mothers and newborns cannot wait for promises that remain on paper,” Governor Kihika said.

The commissioning comes at a time when the country continues to push for safer childbirth, with national data showing that most births now occur in health facilities but maternal and neonatal risks remain a major public health concern.

The Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022 shows that 88 percent of live births in the country are delivered in health facilities, while 17 percent are delivered through caesarean section.

The Ministry of Health has also identified skilled delivery, emergency obstetric care and improved newborn services as key interventions in reducing preventable maternal and newborn deaths across the country.

For Elburgon residents, the new wing is expected to mean shorter referral distances, greater privacy for mothers and a better working environment for healthcare workers handling deliveries, newborn care and emergency cases.

The hospital’s improved capacity is also expected to help families who previously had to seek advanced maternity care outside the area, often incurring extra transport costs during urgent medical situations.

Beyond healthcare, Kihika said the county is preparing to begin laying cabro pavements in Elburgon Town while modernising sewerage and drainage systems to improve sanitation and urban infrastructure.

She said road upgrading and gravelling works under the Imarisha Barabara programme are progressing, with the county also engaging a new contractor to complete the previously stalled ESP Market.

Other ongoing interventions in the area include the Uji Programme in all ECDE centres, continued investment in water services and support for agriculture, which the county says remains central to household incomes.

The maternity wing now shifts attention from a stalled project to sustained service delivery, including adequate staffing, reliable medical supplies, maintenance of equipment and strong referral systems for complicated cases.