Dangerously high patient-to-provider ratios have emerged across Kenya’s informal settlements and rural counties following USAID funding cuts. Health workers describe feeling overwhelmed, burnt out, and unable to provide dignified care. A survey by Jacaranda Health found that 61% of approximately 644 frontline health workers reported staff layoffs at their facilities. Among those who estimated the scale of layoffs, nearly 20% said more than 10 staff members had been sent home.

Date: 7/25

Region: Africa

Country: Kenya

Topic: Health

Policy Lens: Global Health Security

Additional Context: “As a county, some of the implementing partners have had complete withdrawal of staff. This has resulted in delayed service delivery for the supported services. This has negatively affected the delivery of services. There is a massive increase in workload for the remaining staff, and this leads to longer waiting times at service delivery points. Some service delivery points have been completely shut down and merged with others due to limited human resources. This leads to crowding at service delivery points hence further compounding the problem…” —health care worker, Siaya County, Kenya

This quote was first included in a July 2025 research brief by Physicians for Human Rights, entitled "The System is Folding in on Itself”: The Impact of U.S. Global Health Funding Cuts in Kenya"

Jacaranda Health is an NGO headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya that partners with governments across sub-Saharan Africa to deliver scalable, high-quality maternal and newborn care solutions. These findings were first shared in April 2025 as part of a survey of mothers and healthcare workers from Jacaranda Health’s PROMPTS and MENTORS platforms. Find more information here.

Source: Physicians for Human Rights (PHR)