Occupying the big seat: Dr Bichage on his leadership values and vision for Nairobi Hospital
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The Nairobi Hospital chairman Dr Chris M. N. Bichage.
Photo credit: Bonface Bogita | Nation Media Group
What you need to know:
Chairman of The Nairobi Hospital says his board has made some consequential resolutions as the institution prepares to mark its 70th anniversary this year.
For more than four decades, Hon Dr Chris M. N. Bichage has had fun doing what he loves: Leading teams to excel. Logistics and marketing have been his foremost passion, and, as he acknowledges, they have moulded him into who he is today.
But ask him the qualities he values the most in leadership, and he will cite only two: Simple logic and honesty.
In four decades of serving across several sectors, he has distilled the wisdom he has garnered on effective leadership into just these two attributes. He also points out that humility matters and is one attribute young leaders should display.
Dr Bichage, the chairman of the Kenya Hospital Association’s (KHA’s) Board of Management, explains that being humble means a willingness to listen to others.
“You must listen to other people and learn to embrace consensus,” he asserts.
“Even if you think you are the best at what you do, listen to other people’s opinions and pick from them important snippets of facts. This can help you to achieve an objective that will make everyone happy,” he adds.
As Chairman of The Nairobi Hospital, Dr Bichage (a PhD holder, not a medical doctor) says his board has made some consequential resolutions as the institution prepares to mark its 70th anniversary this year. Key among the resolutions is to the establishment of a Cardiac Centre at the hospital by April 2025.
Dr Bichage explains that this is critical because, according to data from the World Health Organisation (WHO), heart disease is the biggest killer of people globally, some of them as young as 40 years old.
“We’ve focused on how to address this challenge,” he says, and emphases: “We want to make The Nairobi Hospital the best life-saving healthcare facility in the region.”
Already, the multi-specialty hospital has acquired a bi-plane catheterisation lab, the first in this region. This equipment, Dr Bichage explains, “cuts theatre time from three hours to 30 minutes, thus boosting the outcomes for patients who undergo surgical interventions to treat heart and lung conditions.”
The planned Cardiac Centre at The Nairobi Hospital will be a VIP self-contained unit that Dr Bichage is convinced will reverse the trend of Kenyans and other Africans seeking specialised treatment abroad.
“This will promote local medical tourism,” he says, pointing out that he expects patients from Africa and the rest of the world to start visiting the facility immediately it opens its doors.
Dr Bichage adds that besides addressing cardiovascular ailments through use of advanced equipment, the hospital is also focused on tackling cancer, kidney disease, and other conditions.
The Nairobi Hospital saved many lives during the Covid-19 pandemic, earning the recognition of the United Nations. “The UN recognised the hospital as the centre that saved the highest number of lives in the world during Covid-19,” Dr Bichage says.
He reports that UN gave The Nairobi Hospital Ksh1 billion to establish a Covid-19 Centre and save lives. Of this amount, the hospital used Ksh830 million, saving Ksh170 million. The UN decided to gift the hospital the saved amount.
“They donated to us an ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation), a machine used for life support in patients whose heart or lung isn’t functioning properly,” Dr Bichage explains.
He says the hospital plans to convert the Covid Centre into a mother and child facility.
Dr Bichage says he is proud to play a part in The Nairobi Hospital’s progress since 1978 when he became a member of KHA.
He was elected Vice-chairman of the Board of Management five years ago, and he ascended to the chairmanship last year during the annual elections.
Career
Starting with a stint in banking at Standard Chartered Bank, Dr Bichage later joined Unilever East Africa, where he worked in logistics and marketing. He then proceeded to a quasi-government institution – the Coffee Board of Kenya (CBK) – where he rose to general manager in charge of operations, and completed his tenure there as international marketing director.
“My job at CBK really made my life, and was an extremely satisfying experience,” Dr Bichage narrates. He adds that he got exposed to strategy, operations, leadership, and governance.
“That experience made me who I am today because the challenges were tough. Timelines and discipline were important. When you are involved in shipping and logistics, time is of essence. If you delay in shipping a load of coffee by 10 minutes, the consequences are serious because the damages will be mind-boggling.”
While working at the Coffee Board, Dr Bichage had the privilege of leading the logistics industry in Kenya and the region. He is credited with the establishment of the Federation of East African Freight Forwarders Associations (FEAFFA). He was elected president of the Comesa Freight Forwarders and represented the organisation at the United Nations General Council in New York, and also at the African Union in Addis Ababa.
“I participated in the creation of the syllabus for freight forwarders and the automation of the previous crude clearing methods, leading to the professionalisation of the clearing and forwarding industry,” Dr Bichage says, adding that this helped the Government to collect more revenue.
He then linked the industry to the Zurich-based FIATA – the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations.
Dr Bichage says the Coffee Board of Kenya introduced him to KHA and by extension, The Nairobi Hospital. He has remained a member of the association ever since, saying he is proud to be associated with it.
“The Nairobi Hospital’s reputation goes beyond our country’s borders. The hospital’s therapeutic care is a cut above the rest,” asserts Dr Bichage, saying this is an institution Kenyans and Africans should be proud of.
He adds: “This is a top institution in healthcare provision in Sub-Saharan Africa, north of the Limpopo River. Our medical consultants are some of the best in the world. They treat patients from across the country, but are domiciled at The Nairobi Hospital.”
Awards
He cites two recent awards as testament to the hospital’s top quality healthcare services. The hospital won the Seddiqi Holding Excellence CSR Award from the International Hospital Federation and the Best Quality Leadership Award from the European Society for Quality Research.
Dr Bichage pays tribute to The Nairobi Hospital’s executive team and staff as the people who contributed to the institution winning the awards. At the same time, he hails other stakeholders for their support that has enabled the hospital to grow from strength to strength since its founding in 1952 as a nursing home, before becoming a fully-fledged hospital in 1954.
He announces that they plan to “take The Nairobi Hospital to the people beyond our centres in Nairobi. We plan to open outpatient centres in towns such as Mombasa, Kisumu, Meru, and Kisii, among others.”
Dr Bichage holds a Bachelor of Building Economics from the University of Nairobi and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from United States International University-Africa (USIU). He holds a PhD in Governance from Washington University.
He possesses vast board experience, having been a director of various organisations, among them GS1 Kenya (2000-2015), Kenya International Freight and Warehousing Association (KIFWA) (1997-2012), Co-operative Finance Co Ltd (1989-1992) and Co-operative Bank of Kenya (1986-1992).
Dr Bichage was an elected Member of Parliament for Nyaribari Chache Constituency in 2013.
