Have you heard? Soon, Kenyans will not need to go to a clinic for checkups.
Not that Kenyans ordinarily go for checkups, also known as physical examinations. Nah, we go to hospital because we are about to die. Otherwise, we just walk around with “malaria”. Or we pop a Panadol. And keep walking.
Still, people won’t need to go to the doctor. The doctor will come to the people. Talk about revolution.
Well, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, anything that’s worthy of the title, “revolution” should be told with deserved weight and respect.
The People Daily did not do that. “Ruto promises Kenyans medical care at their doorstep”, the headline announced with pomp.
The September 25 story was about President William Ruto’s new policy initiative to blanket the country with “Community Health Promoters”. Their task? To detect and arrest most illnesses before they balloon into health crises, or show up at emergency rooms.
It is a radical focus on preventative medicine. Or wellness checks. Or primary healthcare. The goal, said the story, is to hasten steps toward the elusive universal health coverage.
And so, President Ruto personally came out on the streets to “unveil” or “flag off” the first “100,000 Community Health Promoters kits to all the 47 county governments”, the story said.
It is the kind of story that hushes a room. It is a huge public-interest story.
But, sadly, the story was 100 per cent cheerleading. Zero research. Zero interviews. Zero questions about anything.
“Kenyans will now access quality medical care at their doorstep, President William Ruto has promised”, the intro announced.
Rule of thumb: Resist the urge to make any revolutionary announcement, any novelty, as a fait accompli. If it’s a quote, bring it with a pinch of salt, not with nduru. Otherwise, you look like the poster child for “gullible”.
That story did not interrogate, test or explain anything about the said medical care at doorsteps. It simply parroted the President. Then, scribes turned off the lights and went home.
