Kenya Pushes for Greater Nursing Leadership in Health Policy at World Health Assembly
Kenya has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening nursing and midwifery leadership in health policy and decision-making as part of efforts to accelerate Universal Health Coverage during the 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva.
Principal Secretary for Public Health and Professional Standards, Mary Muthoni. Photo/Courtesy
By Ruth Sang
Kenya is once again pushing for more nurse and midwife influence in health policy, basically to make sure leadership isn’t just for doctors or other groups, as the country works toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
At a high-level meeting on strategic leadership for nurses and midwives, held together with the 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Principal Secretary for Public Health and Professional Standards, Mary Muthoni, said nurses and midwives sit right in the middle of healthcare delivery and decision-making.
She pointed out that it’s not enough to treat nurses and midwives only as healthcare providers. They also need to be equipped, as leaders, as managers, and as policy voices, so they can help shape health systems that are more effective, and more responsive.
“Nurses and midwives remain at the centre of healthcare delivery, making critical clinical and operational decisions every day,” said Muthoni, without hesitation.
The PS further noted that the Kenyan government keeps strengthening nursing and midwifery leadership through specific structures, by involving nursing professionals in policy spaces, and by expanding leadership chances at both national and county levels, not just in one place.
The discussion, which was hosted by the International Council of Nurses, brought together global health stakeholders—policymakers, nursing organisations, and development partners—to talk about practical ways to advance nursing and midwifery leadership, and build health systems that are resilient and sustainable, across the world.
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