The Chief Executive of Garissa County Teaching and Referral Hospital said Tuesday that a donation of spare parts and related equipment would keep the facility’s oxygen-generating plants running without interruption for at least two years.
CEO Mahat Sheikh Salah received items valued at $22,921 from Global Health Supply Chain Program implemented by Chemonics International and funded by the U.S. government Department of State.
The consignment included spare parts for the hospital’s oxygen plants, UPS devices, personal protective equipment and medical oxygen cylinder trolleys.
“Health infrastructure and systems at the main referral hospital are best equipped to deliver results,” Salah said.
He added that patients in Garissa “will not in any way lack oxygen” for at least two years.
The hospital serves as the principal referral centre for Garissa and neighbouring counties in northern Kenya, including Wajir, Mandera, Tana River, Isiolo and parts of Marsabit. It treats hundreds of patients daily, many of them pastoralists, low-income residents and refugees from the Dadaab camps.
Victor Okoth, GHSC Kenya Oxygen activity Coordinator, said the support aligned with a broader mission “to promote meaningful change around the world to help people live healthier, more productive, and more independent lives.”
The donation builds on earlier U.S. support for medical oxygen in Garissa. A Pressure Swing Adsorption plant installed with USAID funding through the RISE project, implemented with partners including Jhpiego and Chemonics, has already reduced the hospital’s reliance on costly oxygen shipments from Nairobi.
CEO, Mahat Sheikh Salah said the latest spare parts and accessories would help maintain that capacity and strengthen the hospital’s ability to treat respiratory illness, neonatal complications, surgical cases and other emergencies that require oxygen.
