Stella Omulo and Seth Kagia consult with Robert Limo the Naivasha Sub County TB and leprosy Coordinator during the outreach at Shallimar Flower Farm in Naivasha, Nakuru County, coordinating efforts to strengthen community-centered health service delivery.
This past week, Centre for Health Solutions–Kenya (CHS), through the USAID Tamatisha TB activity, conducted a high-impact integrated health outreach across multiple sub-counties in Nakuru County including Elburgon, Molo, Njoroand Naivasha. The specific sites included; Molo and Elburgon markets, Kiwanja Ndege Church, Shallimar flower farm and Mai-Mahiu health centre. The outreach focused on Tuberculosis (TB) screening and linkage to care, medical check-ups and health education. It also offered broader essential health services tailored to the needs of each community.
From early morning mobilizations to late afternoon screenings, our South Rift team worked hand-in-hand with health care workers from the Nakuru County Department of Health and local community volunteers to ensure no one was left behind. Markets, health centers, churches, and public spaces transformed into hubs of care, as places where residents could access lung health assessments, nutrition checks, blood pressure screenings, and mental health supportall in one stop.
Integrated health outreach in progress at Christ Reigns Gospel Church, Njoro Sub-County, Nakuru County – bringing essential services closer to the community.
TB continues to be a major public health concern in Nakuru County, and through this outreach, 955 individuals were screened, 209 presumptive TB cases identified, 65 were promptly referred for further testing and 24 linked to treatment. Community education sessions created space for open dialogue, dispelling myths around TB and emphasizing the importance of early detection and adherence to treatment.
Stella Omulo – South Rift Regional Officer, noted, “Integrated outreach allows us to meet people where they are and build trust in health systems. It’s about offering holistic care, while keeping TB detection and prevention at the center. This is in a bid to find the 40% missing cases as envisioned by the National TB program”
“This outreach reflects the heart of our work taking services to the people and responding to their needs in real time. By working closely with communities and the county health teams, we are not only detecting TB earlier but also restoring confidence in the health system,” said Seth Kagia, Regional Program Officer – South Rift.
This outreach aligns with Nakuru County Health Department’s goal of strengthening community health systems and improving access to quality, people-centred care. The county is committed to reducing the TB burden, especially in high-incidence areas, by scaling up active case finding, improving diagnostics, and ensuring timely linkage to care, goals that resonate closely with USAID Tamatisha TB goal of improving TB case finding and access to high quality, patient-centred TB, DR-TB and TB/HIV services.
This collaboration between CHS, the county health team, and local stakeholders demonstrates the power of partnership in action. As one community health volunteer in Elburgon said, “When we bring services closer, we bring hope closer.”
As the journey to end TB continues, such outreach efforts remain critical in accelerating case detection, strengthening health systems, and improving overall health outcomes in Nakuru County and beyond.
