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

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.

A global coalition of humanitarian and medical organizations has announced the launch of a new program designed to safeguard kidney and dialysis patients affected by crises worldwide.

The Global Humanitarian Kidney Support Initiative, a partnership between Direct Relief, the American Society of Nephrology (ASN), the European Renal Association (ERA), and the International Society of Nephrology (ISN), seeks to maintain uninterrupted care for individuals with severe kidney diseases during emergencies such as natural disasters, conflicts, and in areas with limited healthcare access.

By combining worldwide clinical nephrology expertise with practical humanitarian logistics, this initiative aims to uphold kidney care services when healthcare systems are disrupted or overwhelmed.

Patients dependent on dialysis or post-transplant therapies requiring critical medications are particularly at risk during emergencies. Continuous treatment is vital for their survival, and any disruption can quickly lead to life-threatening situations. To mitigate these dangers, the initiative will coordinate emergency assistance for healthcare facilities, supply essential medicines and materials, and provide training to healthcare workers managing care in difficult conditions.

“Consistent access to life-sustaining treatments for kidney patients can be challenging to maintain during disasters,” explained Alycia Clark, Chief Pharmacist at Direct Relief. “This partnership supports the delivery of care by ensuring facilities receive the necessary supplies, training, and coordination to provide treatment safely even in crisis settings.”

The collaborating organizations have a history of joint efforts during major crises in the U.S., Ukraine, Sudan, and other regions. The launch formalizes their cooperation, aiming to enhance the speed, coordination, and scale of future responses.

Amy Weaver, CEO of Direct Relief, emphasized, “This initiative demonstrates the greater impact achieved when organizations combine their strengths with a shared goal of addressing urgent medical needs. By bringing together nephrology leaders and humanitarian experts, we create an effective framework to deliver critical kidney care where it is most vulnerable.”

Beyond emergency relief, the initiative also focuses on sustainable improvements by bolstering healthcare infrastructure in low- and middle-income countries, expanding professional training, and promoting patient education and disease prevention. Direct Relief will oversee medical supply management and operational logistics, while ASN, ERA, and ISN will spearhead regional activities through their networks and affiliated societies.

Jeffrey Silberzweig, MD, Chair of ASN’s Humanitarian Kidney Support Program, stated, “ASN is proud to join forces with ERA, ISN, and Direct Relief. Together, we can better support patients and caregivers in areas impacted by both natural and human-made disasters, maximizing the reach of each organization’s resources. Support from corporate and foundation donors will be critical to helping people with kidney disease thrive, even in the toughest situations.”

Professor Mehmet Şükrü Sever, Chair of ERA’s Kidney Relief in Disasters Task Force, noted, “Kidney patients are among the most vulnerable in disaster zones, as their survival depends on functional healthcare infrastructure, advanced technology, and skilled personnel—often within a very short timeframe. This initiative can save lives by promoting clinical education, raising patient awareness, improving prevention strategies, and delivering essential aid when it is most needed.”

Prof. Ali Abu-Alfa, Chair of ISN’s Renal Disaster Preparedness Working Group, added, “In many regions, kidney care access is already precarious. During crises, interruptions in treatment become critically dangerous. By strengthening ties between renal professional societies and humanitarian groups, this initiative enables ISN to apply its expertise and connect local providers with urgent support.”

Looking forward, the initiative plans to broaden its impact by collaborating with pharmaceutical and medical device companies, philanthropic organizations, and global health partners to address critical care gaps and enhance ongoing support for individuals with kidney disease, particularly in areas where treatment options remain fragile.