CS Duale suspends Nursing Council boss over unlawful internship placements
CS Duale has revoked all internship letters issued to the affected 42 students with immediate effect.
The Ministry of Health has suspended Dr. Lister Onsongo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nursing Council of Kenya, over what it describes as a "serious breach of regulations involving the Nursing Council of Kenya (NCK) and ten public and private Universities."
According to Health Cabinet Secretary, Aden Duale, the institutions submitted 42 Bachelor of Science (BSc) Nursing students for internship before the completion of their academic programmes.
"This action is in direct contravention of the Nursing Council Act and the guidelines approved by the Public Service Commission (PSC)," said the CS in a statement.
CS Duale has revoked all internship letters issued to the affected 42 students with immediate effect.
The students have been immediately instructed to vacate their duty stations as investigations commence.
"In line with this, the Ministry has suspended Dr. Lister Onsongo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nursing Council of Kenya, pending the outcome of a comprehensive internal audit of the full cohort of 2,098 BSc Nursing interns," read the statement.
Director Standards and Compliance, Ann Mukuna, has been appointed to take over the operations of the Council until further notice.
The CS reiterated that his ministry is committed to upholding the integrity of healthcare training and deployment.
"All individuals found culpable-whether at the Ministry of Health, the NCK, or within the leadership of the implicated universities be held fully accountable," said Duale.
"This matter is being treated with the utmost urgency to safeguard professional standards, ensure compliance with statutory requirements, and protect the rights of nursing graduates and the public."
The move comes after CS Duale, on June 30, flagged off the deployment of 6,484 healthcare interns across the country, marking the commencement of the 2025/2026 internship cycle.
The ministry hailed the posting as a key milestone in the government’s commitment to timely deployment of interns and the broader agenda of strengthening Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
