In low- and middle-income countries, about 75% of deaths from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) occur among people over 60. Similarly, disability linked to NCDs is four times higher in older adults than in younger groups. Yet despite these realities, specialized care for older people, known as geriatric care, remains largely unavailable. This problem is compounded by the fact that globally, there are only a few geriatricians.
“Kenya has only two Geriatricians! In addition, there is no training in Geriatric Medicine, and no medical program in any Kenyan university includes a unit on Geriatrics, a situation mirrored across much of Africa. Yet research has consistently shown that older people require both medical and long-term care, as well as specialized services. This means there is an urgent need for more professionals trained in geriatric care to promote health by preventing, diagnosing, and treating diseases in older adults.”
This formed part of the presentation by Dr. Nyamongo Sagwe, a senior lecturer in the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), who served as a lead speaker at Kenya’s first NCD Conference organized by the Ministry of Health from November 18 to 25, 2025.
The conference themed Transforming NCD Prevention and Control in Kenya: Primary Health Care integration at the Centre stage, attracted participants from the health sector to discuss various strategies of dealing with NCDs, key among this being Geriatric care.
Dr. Nyamongo was motivated by a growing concern: although people worldwide are living longer (with projections showing that by 2050, one in six people will be 65 years or older), older adults still lack dedicated healthcare services.
To address this challenge, Dr. Nyamongo emphasized the urgent need to integrate geriatric non-communicable disease (NCD) care into primary health care (PHC), ensuring continuous and holistic support that upholds the dignity and quality of life of ageing Kenyans.
With chronic illnesses among older adults rising sharply, he explained that early screening, long-term follow-up, and coordinated care must be embedded at the primary care level. Strengthening PHC in this way, is key to preventing, controlling, and managing NCDs in an ageing population, ultimately improving health outcomes and reducing reliance on costly specialist or hospital-based care.
Dr. Nyamongo advocates for several strategies within the proposed primary healthcare (PHC) setup. These include integrated, team-based care, where different specialists (including community health workers (CHWs) collaborate to address multiple co-existing conditions.
He also recommends comprehensive geriatric assessments that evaluate physical, cognitive, and emotional well-being to develop personalized care plans. Additionally, he emphasizes the role of case managers and care coordinators in guiding patients through the complex healthcare system and helping them manage multiple medications.
Dr. Nyamongo further recommends the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs), such as shared electronic health records and telemedicine, to facilitate data sharing and enable remote follow-ups, particularly for patients in rural areas.
A successful integration of geriatric care into PHC would also ensure uninterrupted supply of essential medicines, basic diagnostic equipment, and sufficient human resources key to delivering quality care.
