Kenya's Medical Lab Officers Threaten Nationwide Strike During Ebola Response
Their union gave the government 14 days to address its complaints about risk pay and Ebola training, a walkout that could disrupt laboratory services nationwide.
See where this is ›NAIROBI, Kenya —
Kenya's medical laboratory officers have threatened to withdraw services nationwide unless the government addresses their complaints within 14 days, The Standard reported Oct. 28. Nicholas Odipo, chairman of the Kenya National Union of Medical Laboratory Officers, delivered the warning to the Ministry of Health and the Council of Governors at a press briefing at the union's offices in Nairobi.
Odipo said lab officers receive a health risk allowance of 3,000 Kenyan shillings a month, while other health workers reportedly get as much as 40,000 shillings. “Medical laboratory professionals are a key component of the healthcare system,” he said. The union also says its members are not adequately trained to handle Ebola cases.
The union says one of the three health care workers who contracted Ebola is a medical laboratory officer. Odipo said government reports show that most of the health workers in quarantine are lab officers. The union said it remains open to dialogue.
Kenya has recorded two Ebola deaths, The Standard reported. The first 20 contacts left quarantine Oct. 26 and 98 others remain there. The Ministry of Health says they will be released in four waves beginning Nov. 3.
What we don't know yet: The Standard did not report the exact date the 14 days end, and its report did not include a response from the Ministry of Health or the Council of Governors. The union's claims about training and infections were not independently confirmed.
