The Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) has ordered health facilities operating in restricted areas such as petrol stations and residential buildings to relocate within six months, citing safety and public health concerns.
- •The Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) says that such locations pose risks, including potential infections, inadequate infrastructure, and fire hazards in fuel stations.
- •The regulator added that facilities that failed to comply with the order would face imminent closure.
- •Small healthcare providers without enough capital or options to move may struggle to find alternative locations.
“Health facilities located in restricted areas, such as petrol stations and residential buildings, are hereby notified that these locations are unsuitable for healthcare operations,” KMPDC said in a statement.
The move is part of a broader effort to tighten medical standards and ensure safer healthcare environments. In February this year, the council cracked down on clinics and beauty spas operating without licenses. A majority of these clinics did not adhere to Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) measures.
Although the regulator’s directive move could broaden scrutiny on the safety standards in clinics mushrooming in urban neighborhoods and estates, small healthcare providers without enough capital to move may struggle to find alternative locations.
Moreover, clinics and small hospitals in residential buildings offer accessibility in medical services to patients who suffer from easily treatable ailments and injuries—saving many residents transport costs and time.
