9th Anniversary of the Late Prof. Hurbert Kairuki
Since his untimely demise on February 6th, 1999, the late Professor Hubert Kairuki’s Memorial Day has, for the last eight years, been marked quietly, mainly by his family as well as the workers at the four institutions Prof. Kairuki founded, namely: Mission Mikocheni Health and Education Network (MMHEN), Mission Mikocheni Hospital (MMH), Hubert Kairuki Memorial University (HKMU), and the Mikocheni School of Nursing (MSN).
The late Prof. Hubert Kairuki
This year’s commemoration involved the testing of women from Mikocheni Village for indications of cervical cancer. The testing was conducted by doctors at Mission Mikocheni Hospital free of charge, as a community service which Mission Mikocheni Hospital offers, and as part of MMH’s free mobile mother-to-child health service it offers, once a week. HKMU students also participated effectively on the Prof. Kairuki Memorial Day. For example, BScN students of the faculty of Nursing, organized a Poster Exhibition on “Critical analysis of selected popular Nursing Theories, and their applicability in situational Nursing practice, in a developing country, like Tanzania”.
The late Prof. Kairuki was a Specialist Obstetrician and Gynecologist who did a lot to improve women’s health in Tanzania. The free mobile mother to child health clinics currently conducted by Mikocheni Hospital are held in remembrance of Prof. Kairuki’s concern, commitment, and professionalism, which he displayed in his bid to provide quality service to mothers and children of all walks of life in Tanzania.
The highlight of Prof. Kairuki’s Memorial Day was marked by the First Hubert Kairuki Memorial Lecture, held at Hubert Kairuki Memorial University on 6th February 2008, which was presented by Dr. Joe Kabyemela, MD, MRCOC and Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist with the Aintree Centre for Women’s Health, UK. Dr. Kabyemela delivered a public lecture entitled “Coming to Grips with Cervical Cancer”.
Professor Hubert Kairuki, a Tanzanian Obstetrician and gynaecologist, who founded the HKMU. He died two years after its inauguration. He is celebrated as a leading visionary and academic.
Dr. Kabyemela’s lecture, which was of a world-class standard, was followed by an interactive discussion by participants. Besides serving as a consultant Gynaecologist at the Aintree Centre for Women’s Health and Liverpool Women’s Hospital, Dr. Kabyemela serves as an Honorary Clinical Lecturer at the Liverpool University School of Medicine, UK.