For thousands of Kenyans living with type 2 diabetes or hypertension, managing a chronic illness involves far more than following a doctor’s instructions or taking prescribed medicines. At its heart, it is a question of access.
Access may involve how far a patient must travel to reach a health facility, whether they can afford their medicines, or how much working time they lose while seeking care. Even the cost of public transport can become a significant burden when repeated clinic visits are required. For some families, attending a routine appointment may mean leaving children or elderly relatives without supervision or sacrificing income that is essential to household expenses.
“For many patients, access isn’t just about distance—it’s about time, income, and the choices no one should have to make,” says Hale Asikoglu Erkol, Head of Sustainable Development for Generations, India, Middle East, Turkey and Africa.
These barriers can make it difficult for patients to maintain treatment consistently. Interruptions in care can have serious consequences, including complications that could have been avoided, hospital admissions that might have been prevented and, in the most severe cases, loss of life.
A mounting healthcare burden
Non-communicable diseases are becoming an increasingly serious health challenge in Kenya. More than 1.8 million adults are estimated to be living with diabetes, while around 5.5 million adults between the ages of 30 and 79 have hypertension. Yet only about 16% of those with hypertension are currently receiving treatment.
The problem is particularly pronounced in rural and underserved areas, where affordable and continuous healthcare can be difficult to access.
For many patients, the obstacle is not a lack of willingness to manage their health. Instead, the healthcare system can demand considerable amounts of travel, time and money—making long-term treatment difficult to maintain.
It is this gap that the Access to Healthcare program in Kenya seeks to address.
Putting patients at the centre of continuous care
Introduced in Kenya in 2022 by Boehringer Ingelheim, the Access to Healthcare program takes a comprehensive, patient-focused approach to managing type 2 diabetes and hypertension.
The initiative is designed to tackle multiple barriers rather than concentrating on just one. It aims to bring healthcare services closer to communities, make medicines more affordable and ensure that patients continue to receive support throughout their treatment journey.
A key component is its tiered pricing structure, which allows eligible patients to obtain medicines at reduced and more affordable prices. However, the program recognises that access to medicine by itself does not guarantee successful long-term disease management.
Patients also need ongoing guidance, follow-up and encouragement. To provide this continuity, nurses conduct regular follow-up with participants for a minimum of 12 months, helping them stay engaged with their treatment and better manage their conditions.
A healthcare journey built around the patient
Screening
Community pop-up clinics bring screening services into neighbourhoods where conventional healthcare facilities may be difficult to reach. Patients can undergo testing and, where necessary, receive referrals for further care.
Diagnosis
Doctors confirm patients’ diagnoses, after which an independent team determines whether they meet the criteria for participation in the program.
Enrollment
Patients who qualify are provided with access to affordable medicines and connected with a nurse who will support them throughout their ongoing care.
Follow-up
For at least 12 months, nurses and health coaches remain engaged with patients, providing advice, helping encourage adherence to treatment and facilitating medication refills.
This approach creates a continuous pathway rather than treating healthcare as a series of isolated clinic visits. For patients managing chronic conditions, that ongoing relationship can be particularly important.
Partnerships driving the program
The Access to Healthcare initiative is based on the understanding that meaningful healthcare innovation requires collaboration. Its implementation brings together organisations with different areas of expertise.
Zuri Health
Zuri Health oversees the patient journey from screening and referrals through enrollment and follow-up. It also uses digital channels, including SMS and USSD, to make healthcare engagement more accessible.
Mission for Essential Drugs and Supplies (MEDS)
MEDS helps make medicines available at affordable prices while supporting healthcare facilities through dependable medicine distribution.
AMPATH
AMPATH contributes to implementation through a network of 20 facilities, supporting physician-led enrollment of eligible patients.
mPharma
mPharma provides data support by monitoring patient numbers, enrollment and treatment adherence across the initiative.
Working together, these organisations help address the different dimensions of healthcare access—location, affordability and clinical support. The program's collaboration with local stakeholders also allows it to work within existing healthcare structures, build local capacity and develop solutions that are better suited to the realities faced by communities.
Taking access to healthcare to a larger scale
Access may involve how far a patient must travel to reach a health facility, whether they can afford their medicines, or how much working time they lose while seeking care. Even the cost of public transport can become a significant burden when repeated clinic visits are required. For some families, attending a routine appointment may mean leaving children or elderly relatives without supervision or sacrificing income that is essential to household expenses.
“For many patients, access isn’t just about distance—it’s about time, income, and the choices no one should have to make,” says Hale Asikoglu Erkol, Head of Sustainable Development for Generations, India, Middle East, Turkey and Africa.
These barriers can make it difficult for patients to maintain treatment consistently. Interruptions in care can have serious consequences, including complications that could have been avoided, hospital admissions that might have been prevented and, in the most severe cases, loss of life.
A mounting healthcare burden
Non-communicable diseases are becoming an increasingly serious health challenge in Kenya. More than 1.8 million adults are estimated to be living with diabetes, while around 5.5 million adults between the ages of 30 and 79 have hypertension. Yet only about 16% of those with hypertension are currently receiving treatment.
The problem is particularly pronounced in rural and underserved areas, where affordable and continuous healthcare can be difficult to access.
For many patients, the obstacle is not a lack of willingness to manage their health. Instead, the healthcare system can demand considerable amounts of travel, time and money—making long-term treatment difficult to maintain.
It is this gap that the Access to Healthcare program in Kenya seeks to address.
Putting patients at the centre of continuous care
Introduced in Kenya in 2022 by Boehringer Ingelheim, the Access to Healthcare program takes a comprehensive, patient-focused approach to managing type 2 diabetes and hypertension.
The initiative is designed to tackle multiple barriers rather than concentrating on just one. It aims to bring healthcare services closer to communities, make medicines more affordable and ensure that patients continue to receive support throughout their treatment journey.
A key component is its tiered pricing structure, which allows eligible patients to obtain medicines at reduced and more affordable prices. However, the program recognises that access to medicine by itself does not guarantee successful long-term disease management.
Patients also need ongoing guidance, follow-up and encouragement. To provide this continuity, nurses conduct regular follow-up with participants for a minimum of 12 months, helping them stay engaged with their treatment and better manage their conditions.
A healthcare journey built around the patient
Screening
Community pop-up clinics bring screening services into neighbourhoods where conventional healthcare facilities may be difficult to reach. Patients can undergo testing and, where necessary, receive referrals for further care.
Diagnosis
Doctors confirm patients’ diagnoses, after which an independent team determines whether they meet the criteria for participation in the program.
Enrollment
Patients who qualify are provided with access to affordable medicines and connected with a nurse who will support them throughout their ongoing care.
Follow-up
For at least 12 months, nurses and health coaches remain engaged with patients, providing advice, helping encourage adherence to treatment and facilitating medication refills.
This approach creates a continuous pathway rather than treating healthcare as a series of isolated clinic visits. For patients managing chronic conditions, that ongoing relationship can be particularly important.
Partnerships driving the program
The Access to Healthcare initiative is based on the understanding that meaningful healthcare innovation requires collaboration. Its implementation brings together organisations with different areas of expertise.
Zuri Health
Zuri Health oversees the patient journey from screening and referrals through enrollment and follow-up. It also uses digital channels, including SMS and USSD, to make healthcare engagement more accessible.
Mission for Essential Drugs and Supplies (MEDS)
MEDS helps make medicines available at affordable prices while supporting healthcare facilities through dependable medicine distribution.
AMPATH
AMPATH contributes to implementation through a network of 20 facilities, supporting physician-led enrollment of eligible patients.
mPharma
mPharma provides data support by monitoring patient numbers, enrollment and treatment adherence across the initiative.
Working together, these organisations help address the different dimensions of healthcare access—location, affordability and clinical support. The program's collaboration with local stakeholders also allows it to work within existing healthcare structures, build local capacity and develop solutions that are better suited to the realities faced by communities.
Taking access to healthcare to a larger scale
- Reach: More than 140,000 people reached and screened
- Treatment: More than 10,000 patients currently receiving care
- Network: Over 30 hospitals, clinics and community healthcare facilities involved
- Coaching: More than 20,000 coaching sessions completed
Since its introduction, the program has expanded considerably. Behind these numbers are people who have gained access to screening, treatment and ongoing support, reducing the need to navigate chronic disease management without assistance.
The role of Zuri Health
As a social entrepreneur supported through Boehringer Ingelheim’s Social Business initiative, Zuri Health has become an important part of the program's implementation.
In 2023, Zuri Health became part of the Social Business Accelerator program, where it piloted a continuous-care approach for people living with hypertension and diabetes. Findings from the pilot highlighted a recurring problem: patients in rural communities frequently stopped treatment because obtaining medicines was difficult and ongoing follow-up was limited.
“When treatment stops, it’s rarely because patients don’t care. It’s because the system makes continuity too hard,” says Ikechukwu Anoke, Founder & CEO of Zuri Health.
Zuri Health's emphasis on supporting patients throughout their entire care journey, particularly those living in rural areas, made it well suited to the initiative. Through mobile health camps and community clinics, the organisation has screened and enrolled thousands of people, helping expand both the program's reach and its ability to provide continuing care.
Creating pathways to healthier communities
The Access to Healthcare program represents more than an individual healthcare initiative. It forms part of a wider effort to improve access to treatment in communities where conventional healthcare systems can leave significant gaps.
By bringing together funding, expertise, healthcare providers and community-based organisations, the initiative seeks to address practical barriers that prevent people from receiving consistent care. At the same time, it aims to strengthen healthcare pathways so they become more inclusive, sustainable and resilient.
Ultimately, improving healthcare access is about making it easier for people to remain connected to the care they need. When the practical obstacles to treatment are reduced, patients have a better opportunity to manage chronic conditions and improve their quality of life.
The role of Zuri Health
As a social entrepreneur supported through Boehringer Ingelheim’s Social Business initiative, Zuri Health has become an important part of the program's implementation.
In 2023, Zuri Health became part of the Social Business Accelerator program, where it piloted a continuous-care approach for people living with hypertension and diabetes. Findings from the pilot highlighted a recurring problem: patients in rural communities frequently stopped treatment because obtaining medicines was difficult and ongoing follow-up was limited.
“When treatment stops, it’s rarely because patients don’t care. It’s because the system makes continuity too hard,” says Ikechukwu Anoke, Founder & CEO of Zuri Health.
Zuri Health's emphasis on supporting patients throughout their entire care journey, particularly those living in rural areas, made it well suited to the initiative. Through mobile health camps and community clinics, the organisation has screened and enrolled thousands of people, helping expand both the program's reach and its ability to provide continuing care.
Creating pathways to healthier communities
The Access to Healthcare program represents more than an individual healthcare initiative. It forms part of a wider effort to improve access to treatment in communities where conventional healthcare systems can leave significant gaps.
By bringing together funding, expertise, healthcare providers and community-based organisations, the initiative seeks to address practical barriers that prevent people from receiving consistent care. At the same time, it aims to strengthen healthcare pathways so they become more inclusive, sustainable and resilient.
Ultimately, improving healthcare access is about making it easier for people to remain connected to the care they need. When the practical obstacles to treatment are reduced, patients have a better opportunity to manage chronic conditions and improve their quality of life.
]]>
