The parliamentary inquiry into alleged malpractice in kidney transplant services at Mediheal Group of Hospitals widened on Thursday, with lawmakers summoning St. Luke’s Orthopedic and Trauma Hospital and Oak Tree Hospital to explain their role in transplant procedures involving foreign nationals.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Departmental Committee on Health in Eldoret, officials from the two hospitals admitted to conducting kidney transplants on Somali patients who were registered and paid through the now-defunct National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).
Committee chairperson Dr. James Nyikal said the inquiry, triggered by a petition from an MP, was scrutinising possible cases of organ harvesting in the region.
“What we have so far found is that there is ongoing normal kidney transplant, but there may be some that are not normal,” Dr. Nyikal said, adding that the team would interview victims who claim to have been donors.
During the session, Endebess MP Dr. Robert Pukose pressed St. Luke’s to clarify whether it had treated foreigners. Dr. Silvia Nikita, a medical officer at the hospital, confirmed that five Somali nationals had undergone kidney transplants at the facility.
Hospital officials explained that Oak Tree Medical Centre was responsible for pairing donors and recipients under a memorandum of understanding. “Most of the cases involved blood relatives,” Dr. Nikita said. However, MPs raised doubts about the authenticity of such relationships.
Documents presented to the committee showed that St. Luke’s has conducted 34 kidney transplants, with reported complications including organ rejection, bleeding, and one donor who developed acute kidney injury but later recovered. Officials also acknowledged receiving reports of a few post-surgery deaths.
Lawmakers questioned why St. Luke’s outsourced laboratory services to Oak Tree and even overseas facilities despite having its own lab. Ndhiwa MP Martin Owino also challenged the practice of sending cross-matching samples to India and South Africa when accredited labs exist locally.
Consent procedures emerged as another area of concern. Kisumu Central MP Dr. Joshua Oron sought clarification on whether patients and donors signed consent forms at St. Luke’s or Oak Tree, given that the former lacks a resident nephrologist or dialysis clinic.
St. Luke’s Director Mary Lelei and Oak Tree Director Mathew Koech insisted that all procedures followed ethical and legal guidelines under the Health Act, Human Tissues Act, and Data Protection Act. Lelei further defended the treatment of Somali nationals, saying NHIF law allowed foreigners with temporary residency to access cover.
“It’s not just Somalis—there were also Chinese nationals working on road projects. The Somalis we treated were paid-up members of NHIF,” she said.
Lawmakers, however, warned hospital administrators against withholding information. “We don’t come here thinking you are doing something wrong. But when you withhold information, you raise unnecessary suspicion,” said Nyeri Town MP Duncan Mathenge.