Why Kenya is burdened with non-communicable diseases

According to a report by the World Health Organisation in 2018, 39% of the deaths in the country are a result of non-communicable diseases.

Globally the numbers are even more shocking, with WHO estimating that NCDs, including heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and chronic lung disease, are collectively responsible for 74% of all deaths worldwide.

For starters, NCDs are diseases not spread through infection. Also known as chronic diseases, NCDs are of long durations and are the result of a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors.

Appearing on Citizen TV’s Power Talk on Tuesday, Aga Khan University Hospital CEO Rashid Khalani said that for Kenya to effectively manage NCDs it must embrace a preventive approach to care as opposed to the curative approach.

“For a healthier Kenya, we need to identify diseases early through regular check-ups. When diseases are diagnosed late, the treatment is prolonged and expensive and puts pressure on individuals, families and the healthcare system,” said Mr Khalani.

Khalani said that at the Aga Khan University Hospital, they randomly screened 1200 people who were accompanying patients to the hospital and the results were shocking.

“Remember these are people who were accompanying patients, they were not sick. 28% of those tested were found to have abnormal blood pressure while 70% of the 1200 people had an abnormal Body Mass Index (BMI)”, he said.

Khalani took over as CEO of Aga Khan University Hospital in March 2021, at the height of the third wave of the Covid-19 disease. He says since then, the journey has been challenging but rewarding at the same time.

“At Aga Khan University Hospital we are not only treating patients, we are also training nurses and doctors for tomorrow. That is sustainability,” he said.

The hospital is the teaching centre for Aga Khan University’s Medical College which runs residency programmes (Masters in Medicine) and various fellowship programmes which are advanced training for cardiology, oncology, neurology, infectious diseases, haematology and nuclear medicine.

The University will this September start an undergraduate medical degree programme.