Posted on: Mon 19-01-2026

In Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) is positioning itself at the forefront of efforts to address two of Africa’s most persistent healthcare challenges: medical brain drain and outbound medical tourism.

Situated in the Parklands area of the city, the expansive AKUH complex—comprising a tertiary-care hospital, a medical university and a research centre—has evolved into a major hub for specialised healthcare delivery in East Africa and beyond.

According to AKUH Chief Executive Officer, Rashid Khalani, the institution was deliberately designed to serve not only Kenya, but the wider African continent.

“Our vision is to become a premier tertiary teaching hospital with a regional network capable of serving sub-Saharan Africa,” Khalani says. “We believe in international-level quality, and everything we do is guided by evidence-based medicine.”

Founded in 1958 as a primary care facility, AKUH transitioned into a full-fledged teaching hospital in 2004, a move Khalani says was inspired by a long-term strategy to retain African medical talent.

“The initiative was conceived by His Highness the Aga Khan as part of measures to stop brain drain from Africa,” he explains. “His Highness reasoned that we needed a ‘factory’ to keep training doctors.”

Today, the 68-year-old institution operates 300 bed spaces, supported by a network of 54 outreach medical centres across Kenya. The goal, Khalani says, is to decentralise access to quality healthcare by bringing services closer to communities.

“In this hospital and our 54 core outreach centres, we see almost 700,000 patients annually,” he says. “We conduct about 2.5 million laboratory tests a year, around 110 radiology diagnostics daily, about 10,000 radiation sessions annually, roughly 3,000 deliveries, and close to 12,000 surgeries.”

The hospital’s operations are driven by a workforce of about 3,000 staff, including 180 full-time doctors—who also serve as faculty members—and more than 800 nurses.

“We don’t just call them doctors; we call them faculty members,” Khalani explains. “They treat patients and also train the next generation of doctors and nurses.”

AKUH’s specialists are spread across nine departments and work within a multidisciplinary framework that Khalani describes as central to the hospital’s appeal and effectiveness.

“One important feature of our structure is the multidisciplinary approach,” he says. “A brilliant gastroenterologist does not automatically become a nephrologist or a surgeon. We insist that patients are managed by the right specialists working together.”

This approach has earned AKUH multiple international accreditations, including certification by the Joint Commission International (JCI) and the College of American Pathologists (CAP).

“These certifications matter because they independently validate our standards,” Khalani says. “JCI, for instance, measures hospitals against 1,200 performance indicators, with a minimum pass mark of 85 per cent. We have consistently met those standards.”

As a teaching institution, AKUH runs undergraduate medical programmes, postgraduate residency training and clinical fellowship programmes, reinforcing its role as a regional training centre.

 

Advanced medical technology

AKUH has also built a reputation for introducing cutting-edge medical technology to sub-Saharan Africa.

“In terms of equipment, we are known for many firsts,” Khalani says.

The hospital was the first in sub-Saharan Africa to install a Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scan and a cyclotron, creating an advanced ecosystem for cancer diagnostics. It also introduced the first Linear Accelerator (Linac) in the region in 2011 and later upgraded to the TrueBeam Linac for advanced radiation therapy.

The facility houses two cardiac catheterisation laboratories, a three-Tesla MRI, a 256-slice CT scanner, and was the first in the region to acquire neuro-navigation systems for brain surgery. It also operates AI-enabled mammography, SPECT-CT nuclear medicine imaging and a fully automated laboratory system.

Among its laboratory innovations is the MALDI-TOF mass spectrometer, first introduced in Kenya at AKUH.

“This machine identifies bacterial infections in just 18 minutes,” Khalani explains. “Traditionally, patients wait 24 to 48 hours for results and are often placed on antibiotics immediately. Rapid diagnostics allow us to reduce unnecessary antibiotic use.”

Citing World Health Organisation data linking antibiotic misuse to millions of deaths globally, Khalani says rapid diagnostics are essential in combating antimicrobial resistance.

 

Tackling brain drain

Beyond infrastructure, AKUH’s strategy for addressing medical brain drain rests on professional fulfilment and competitive remuneration.

“Nobody wants to leave home if the quality of life and professional environment are good,” Khalani says.

“First, we give doctors the tools to practise good medicine. Second, we pay competitively. If a cardiologist or oncologist is not remunerated fairly, migration becomes inevitable.”

Through this model, Khalani believes AKUH is reshaping Africa’s healthcare narrative.

“Our objective is simple: world-class care, delivered in Africa, by Africans.”

 

World-class diagnostic laboratory

Central to AKUH’s reputation is its diagnostic department, widely regarded as one of the most advanced in the region.

The pathology department has 18 full-time pathologists. According to its Chair and Director, Prof. Shaheen Sayed, AKUH’s strength lies in the depth of sub-specialisation.

“Across the region, nobody has this level of sub-specialty representation in one laboratory,” she says. “Every section has a full-time pathologist working closely with clinicians.”

AKUH is the only clinical laboratory in the region accredited by the College of American Pathologists, one of the highest global benchmarks for laboratory practice.

Clinical pathologist Prof. Geoffrey Omuse says quality at AKUH is deliberate and institutional.

“In 2010, we secured ISO 15189 accreditation at a time when no East African body could confer it,” he recalls. “We invited assessors from South Africa because no one locally could evaluate us.”

The hospital later pursued CAP accreditation in 2018, aligning its laboratory standards with leading institutions in the United States.

“We perform over 13 million tests annually, and our error rate is less than one per cent,” Omuse says. “Every error is investigated through root-cause analysis, because in healthcare, every error matters.”

 

Coming home to care

For many specialists, AKUH represents an opportunity to return home and practise at a global standard. Consultant nephrologist Prof. Ahmed Sokwala, trained in Canada, describes his return to Kenya as deeply fulfilling.

“Here, you are not just one among many,” he says. “You build lasting relationships with patients.”

AKUH has recorded strong outcomes in renal care, including kidney transplantation, with Sokwala citing 100 per cent graft and patient survival rates.

Similarly, consultant interventional cardiologist Dr Jeilan Mohamed, trained in the United Kingdom, returned to Kenya in 2012 to help build what is now one of Africa’s most advanced cardiac centres.

“If you have a heart attack in Nairobi and come here, you are entering a Heart Attack Centre of Excellence,” Mohamed says.

AKUH achieved American accreditation for this status in 2020, becoming the only Joint Commission–accredited heart attack centre of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa.

“Our target is to treat heart attacks within 60 minutes of arrival,” he says. “Speed, coordination and teamwork are our strengths.”

 

Training the next generation

AKUH’s commitment to capacity building extends across specialties. Vice Chair of Radiology, Dr Rose Ndumia, says the hospital trains radiologists from across East and Central Africa.

“We train them so they can return home and advance care in their countries,” she says.

The hospital has pioneered PET-CT imaging, nuclear medicine services and targeted nuclear therapies in Kenya, reducing the need for patients to travel abroad.

In gynaecology, consultant oncologist Dr Khadija Warfa says AKUH’s group practice model enhances both patient care and physician wellbeing.

“With consultants available around the clock, patients receive continuous, high-quality care,” she says. “For doctors, it reduces burnout and improves quality of life.”

As AKUH continues to expand its regional footprint, its leadership believes the institution offers a compelling alternative to overseas treatment and migration.

By combining advanced technology, rigorous standards and deliberate talent retention, the hospital is steadily redefining what is possible for healthcare delivery in Africa.

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