The earliest recorded medical exercise in our diocese was on February 1947, when Fr. James Giltinan, a Holy Ghost Missionary, began issuing medicine to sick people in Mutune.   The first Diocesan hospital was Muthale (1948) initially run by Franciscan missionary sisters for Africa; followed by Mutomo hospital (1964). Since then several mission health institutions have been established in several parishes in the dioceses, including Mutune, Mulutu dispensaries. Currently Mutomo Hospital has population catchment of 29,024 patients, while serving over 20,900 outpatients, While Muthale Mission Hospital has Population catchment of 11939, serving 5532 outpatients (Source: Kitui District Health Plan 07/08; Updated: April 2007)   The Medical department was set up in the diocese in 1976, a time by which it was undertaking Primary Health care (PHC), whose objective was treat common infections in this region, including Malaria.   Some of our clinics are closing down, due to high levels of poverty, but also on a positive note, improved affordable services in public health units. So far 6 units have been closed recently; including: Kimangao Health Centre, Nguuku; Nthangani; Kathanze; Mutune (being revived); Kweluu; Miambani dispensaries.However 10 more units are operational in the Diocese.   THERAPEUTIC FEEDING: For the last 6 years, Kitui, Mwingi and Mutomo districts have been faced with acute shortage of...(Click and Read More

Home Based Care Programme Home-Based Care Programme (HBCP) was introduced into the Diocesan Health programme on pilot project basis in Mutomo in 1991, from an initiative of Dr. Frank Engelhard, who was then working in Mutomo Hospital after observing that some patients were dying of AIDS-related Symptoms.   The programme is in 4 main referral centers: Mutomo Mission Hospital; Kitui District General Hospital; Muthale Mission and Mwingi District Hospital; with outreach stations/ communities/ groups spread all over the diocese.   Mission : To create  a community that is aware of HIV/AIDS and the prevention, leading to behavioural change through community involvement as well as to provide quality life to people Infected/ affected by HIV/AIDS   Objectives: §          Provide care and support to those infected and affected; §          To strengthen referral  and networking systems in the community; §          Reduce the prevalence of STIs particularly among the youth; §          Provide educational support; empowerment of Orphans/ Vulnerable children (OVCs) socially and economically; §          Therapeutic feeding support.   Activities: Our HIV Programme carries out various activities towards achieving these objectives. They include §          Counseling (Voluntary Counseling and Testing; Diagnostic and Treatment Counseling (DTC); Prevention of Mother To Child Transmission (PMTCT) counseling  and testing; §          Administration of ART (Comprehensive Care Centre) §          Group counseling (group therapy for those infected and affected) §          Clinical nursing care/ treatment of opportunistic infections §          Home visits  (infected/ affected) §          Health education aimed at behaviour change especially among the youth; §          Advocacy; on behalf of the PLWHAs/ Orphans; §          Distributions of food supplements; §          Formation of Support groups; §          Referrals networking and collaboration; §          Income generating Activities; §          Community mobilization and sensitization; §          Supplementary feeding programme §          Capacity building   In order to undertake these activities, including others, several partners have journeyed with us. They include: Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD); Caritas Luxemburg; Norwegian Church Aid (NCA); World Council for Churches (WCC), Kenyan Government through various ministries, including the ministry of health, USAID through the APHIA II Eastern programme, Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, CRS, among others.   The above activities are carried our through various strategies, including Guidance and counseling services; Formation of Anti- AIDS groups; Socio-economic support especially of the Orphans and Vulnerable Children; Training in leadership and life skills; as well as advocacy and awareness creation.   Awareness is achieved through use of Public talks; testimonials; video shows; drama (theatre); Poetry; Production of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) material. Our HIV/ AIDS Programme has a mobile puppet (Theatre) unit that is operated by volunteers, who are mainly young people. It has been one of most convenient media used to create awareness to the communities in Kitui, Mwingi and Mutomo Districts   . THE RELIGIOUS’ PARTICIPATION IN HIV PROGRAMME: “I have journeyed with a lot of people living with HIV/AIDS… Quite a good number of... (Click and read more)

As Part of advocacy, our HIV programme has been part and parcel in organizing and celebrating World AIDS Day in Kitui and Mwingi every year   Impact: Through this programme, there has been prolonged life, thus, reduced immature deaths among the clients in the programme.   Also there has been reduced stigma and discrimination; due to increased awareness in the community. This has also made more Persons Living with HIV/ AIDS (PLWHAs) gain confidence, and as a result, they have gone public on their status. Currently, this region is one of the areas in our country highly rated as having the highest number of PLWHAs who have publicly declared their status.   Also, as a result of the awareness, more members of the community are getting involved, and are participating in care and support of not only the infected persons, but also the affected, vulnerable groups.   Through effective referral and networking system; clients gaining quality; effective; efficient and accessible health care;   Through training in life skills and socio – economic support, the infected and affected persons have better self as a result of initiating some income generating programmes.   Challenges: Despite the fact that the programme continues to register success in its mission, it is faced with challenges. Among the most important one is the vicious cycle of poverty in this area, where majority percentage live under a dollar in a house hold per day.   With low rainfall that is poor distributed, most people, who normally depend on agro – livestock peasantry farming have suffered drought after drought fro the last six years. This has left them with virtually no means of getting a decent day’s meal. Most affected have been the vulnerable, and in this category are the persons infected/ affected by HIV/ AIDS.   Still stigma and discrimination is evident in the families of infected / affected persons (especially in family property disinheritance), in schools enrollment for the orphans/ Vulnerable children, as well as in communities in social activities.   Though the primary education is free, due to limited funds, very few of these vulnerable children are joining secondary and tertiary institutions of education.   In addition there is uncertainty of the future funding of the programme to support the already existing activities, as well as the new emerging areas of intervention as more and more persons continue to register with the programme.   The future: Still, a lot remains to be done. As the infected and affected persons continue to face poverty and stigma/ discrimination, new areas of intervention have come out including need for legal support for the rights of these persons.   The PLWHAs and the orphans/ Vulnerable persons are constantly facing domestic violence from spouses and relatives; being denied chances for school enrollment due to their conditions (The Vulnerable children); high rate of school dropout (especially the girl child), early forced marriages, disinheriting of orphans/(widows) of their parents’/ (Husbands’) property et al.   Also in order to give the PLWHAs/ OVCs more power for self support, there  is need to develop more income Generating Activities, as well as seeking better markets for the goods being produced through the already existing IGAs in the programme.   The programme also plans to set up a resource centre that will include a library, data base and a research facility within the field of the programme