Kenyatta National Hospital announced its doctors had operated on a set of conjoined twins with a single large intestine
The twins were born via caesarean section on August 13, 2025, at a combined weight of 3.6 kilograms at Naivasha County Hospital.
They were referred to KNH‘s Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at 3:00 am on August 14, 2025.
Upon arrival, medical evaluation confirmed that the babies are conjoined at the abdomen and pelvis, Chief Executive Officer Dr Evanson Kamuri said.
“It was also established that they did not have anal openings,” he added.
To save their lives, the specialised paediatric surgical team performed an emergency colostomy on August 17, 2025. This procedure created an opening to resolve intestinal obstruction and allow the passage of stool.
Further tests have revealed that the twins share a single large intestine.
They also present with congenital heart disease, impaired liver function, and a mild blood infection, all of which are being managed by the hospital’s multidisciplinary team.
The surgery was led by Senior Director Clinical Services Dr. Joel Lessan, assisted by Dr. Tim Jumbi, Dr. Caroline Mwende, Dr. Sovata Munyalo, Dr Kassim Mustafa, Dr Shirleen Nanjala, Dr Sospeter Kamau. Also in the team was Head of Specialised Surgery, Dr Benjamin Wabwire.
The anaesthesia team was headed by Dr. Mark Gacii, Dr Nancy Okonu, Dr. Joe Mugambi, Dr. Diriba Fayisa, and Dr. Tigst Gebre.
They were assisted by Theatre Service Assistants Emily Munene, Bernard Ayunga and Biomedical Engineer Steve Belle, alongside dedicated nursing officers James Shikuku, Samuel Orina, Stella Gaitho and Catherine Wawira.
The twins are currently stable and continue to receive specialised care from a comprehensive team of neonatologists, paediatric surgeons, anaesthesiologists, cardiologists, radiologists, psychologists, and social workers.
Meanwhile, health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Aden Duale has announced plans to set up a joint committee with the CEOs of insurance companies across the country to tackle fraudulent activities that have been plaguing the Social Health Authority (SHA).
He said after meeting with the health insurance CEOs at Afya House the committee would ensure that every Kenyan can access quality healthcare while taming ill practices.
“We agreed to establish a Joint Anti-Fraud Action to crack down on malpractice in the sector and strengthen collaboration with the Social Health Authority (SHA) to expand access to affordable, quality healthcare for all Kenyans,” Duale said.
“I updated the CEOs on the ongoing TaifaCare reforms anchored in the Social Health Insurance Act, Primary Health Care Act, Digital Health Act, Facility Improvement Financing Act and the forthcoming Quality of Care and Patient Safety Bill, all critical pillars in advancing Universal Health Coverage (UHC).”
Some of the resolutions agreed upon in the meeting include having private insurers extend benefits beyond SHA’s packages and co-finance chronic care, insurers to be linked with SHA’s digital claims platform to ensure transparency and efficiency, and accreditation being harmonized to ensure quality of care is uniform.
The CEOs also rallied for support to strengthen the National Health Registry and establish a framework to regulate drug pricing.
Furthermore, Duale reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to tackling structural challenges and called for a collaborative framework.
“I reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to tackling structural challenges through legal, institutional and data-driven reforms and called for a Public–Private Collaborative framework involving MoH, SHA, private insurers and IRA,” reaffirmed Duale.
The health coverage was introduced on October 1, 2024 to replace the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).
President William Ruto said NHIF accumulated billions of shillings in debt and had misalignments with the contributions from Kenyans in comparison to the cost of healthcare services.
