The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) has given the government seven days to resolve the ongoing nurses’ strike, warning that doctors could down their tools if the dispute remains unresolved. KMPDU Secretary-General Dr Davji Bhimji Atellah said the prolonged absence of nurses had severely disrupted services in public hospitals and placed additional pressure on doctors. Speaking in Nairobi on Monday, September 7, Atellah said doctors could no longer continue performing duties normally handled by nurses, particularly as the country already faces a shortage of medical practitioners. The nationwide nurses’ strike began on July 29, 2026, after negotiations over the implementation of outstanding provisions in their Collective Bargaining Agreement failed to resolve the dispute.

The industrial action has now lasted more than 40 days, affecting nursing services in public hospitals across the country. Nurses have been demanding implementation of their CBA, better pay and allowances, promotions, adequate staffing and improved working conditions. Atellah said the continued strike had left many public hospitals operating at what he described as “bare minimum” capacity. He warned that the situation was becoming increasingly difficult for doctors who were already working under heavy workloads.

Atellah said doctors were being forced to take on responsibilities traditionally performed by nurses, a situation he described as unsustainable.

“Doctors cannot do the nursing jobs,” Atellah said.

He said nursing care was particularly critical in areas such as intensive care units, high-dependency units and hospital wards, where patients require continuous monitoring and assistance. KMPDU also raised concerns about complications and deaths involving patients, including children and mothers, which Atellah said could potentially have been prevented if hospitals were operating normally. The union accused the government of failing to resolve longstanding issues affecting health workers. Atellah said some of the nurses’ grievances could be traced back to the 2017 Return-to-Work Formula, arguing that successive governments had been aware of the outstanding commitments. He also called for the implementation of agreements signed between health workers and the government and deposited in court. The KMPDU secretary-general said the government could not continue treating the situation as normal while a critical component of the public healthcare system remained on strike.

While supporting efforts to resolve the nurses’ dispute, KMPDU also raised outstanding issues affecting doctors. Atellah said doctors had been promised adjustments to their payslips in August, but the changes had not been implemented. He expressed hope that the outstanding adjustments would be made in September. The union’s seven-day ultimatum therefore comes against the backdrop of separate unresolved grievances affecting doctors, as well as the wider dispute involving nurses.

The warning raises the possibility of a broader disruption of public healthcare services if the government and nurses fail to reach an agreement within the seven-day period. A doctors’ strike would come on top of the ongoing nurses’ industrial action, potentially placing additional pressure on patients who depend on public hospitals. For now, KMPDU has stopped short of declaring an immediate strike and has instead given the government seven days to act. If no resolution is reached, the union has warned that doctors could join the industrial action, further escalating the standoff in Kenya’s public health sector.