The Kenya Medical Training Institute (KMTC) final year medical students have received half a million medical grade masks donated by the Equity Group Foundation and the Kenya COVID-19 Fund Board. The masks, valued at Ksh. 2.5 million were donated to 8,292 final year students studying in different disciplines including Nursing, Clinical Medicine, Pharmacy, Laboratory Medicine, and Oral Health, among others.
The surgical masks will facilitate students who are scheduled to sit for final year qualifying examinations this February across 71 KMTC training centres in Kenya. The donation is part of Equity Group Foundation’s and the Kenya COVID-19 Fund Board’s efforts to offer frontline healthcare workers PPEs and psychosocial support.
Speaking during the official handover event, Polycarp Igathe, Equity Group Chief Commercial Officer noted that the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, with the world now reporting new variants of the diseases across various regions. He called for adaptability and agility in frontline response. He reiterated Equity Group’s commitment to safeguard healthcare workers serving in the frontline and appreciated their efforts in containing the pandemic within the country.
“It is now almost a year since Kenya reported its first COVID-19 case. Although it may seem that things are normalizing, the numbers have been steadily rising and many Kenyans have unfortunately lost their lives including our very own frontline heroes, serving Kenyans in our medical facilities. The surgical masks donated today will go a long in alleviating their mental worry and stress regarding risk of exposure.” said Polycarp.
The Kenya COVID-19 Fund Board and Equity Group Foundation have for the past eight months initiated support for frontline health workers in public hospitals with PPEs, as well as establish a vibrant psychosocial support and mental wellness program.
While receiving the surgical masks, KMTC CEO, Prof. Micheal Kiptoo, “We are extremely humbled that Equity Group Foundation and the Kenya COVID-19 Fund Board thought about our medical students and saw it fit to equip them with protective gear. We need all hands-on deck to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and our students are an important resource who are complementing the service of their senior colleagues in practice. This pandemic continues to affect all Kenyans irrespective of their background and we welcome other corporates to join in this worthy cause.”
The Kenya COVID-19 Fund Board and Equity Group Foundation continue to support 56 Public Hospitals in all 47 counties together with finalist students in 11 medical and dental training institutions.