PATH, in collaboration with the Kenya Ministry of Health, conducted a biomedical equipment survey in health facilities across the country from December 2023 and January 2024.

This report analyzes data collected via facility assessments to provide a snapshot of the medical oxygen ecosystem from 113 health facilities in seven counties across Kenya. The purpose of this work is to quantify bed capacity, facility infrastructure characteristics, consumables for administering oxygen therapy, and existing oxygen delivery and production equipment.

The survey included a mix of public health facilities of multiple levels, including level 3, 4, and 5 facilities that per Kenya’s standards should provide respiratory care. The results demonstrated that the availability of oxygen services and respiratory care equipment is highly variable in health facilities in Kenya.

Nineteen facilities (17 percent) reported possessing on-site pressure swing adsorption plants for continuous reliable oxygen delivery to patients. Most facilities that provide services with high demand for oxygen (maternity, surgical, and intensive care wards) also possessed oxygen concentrators and cylinders to provide a reliable supply.

The quantity of small equipment and delivery devices such as flowmeters and cannulas varies considerably in availability, and will limit the accessibility of available oxygen supply to patients.