Shoe4Africa Childrens Hospital

Shoe4Africa Children's Hospital is the first dedicated public children's hospital in East and Central Africa.

Shoe4Africa Childrens Hospital
Shoe4Africa
Geography
Location	Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, Kenya
Coordinates	0.510175°N 35.280140°E / 0.510175; 35.280140
Organisation
Care system	Public Health Service
Type	Teaching
Affiliated university	Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH)
Services
Emergency department	Yes
Beds	200
Speciality	Children's hospital
History
Opened	August 12th, 2015
Links
Website	www.africachildrens.org
Lists	Hospitals in Kenya

Early Construction Progress

It is the second dedicated public children's hospital in Sub-Saharan Africa, after the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, which opened in 1956.

Construction began in 2013, and the hospital officially opened on August 12, 2015. Initially a 105-bed hospital, it was expanded to 200 beds by 2018, and to 250 in 2020.

The Shoe4Africa Children's Hospital operates as a teaching hospital, in partnership with Moi University. Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, Kenya's second-largest national hospital, governs the Shoe4Africa Children's Hospital. It is built within its government grounds.

In 2024, the hospital is treating over 430 in-patients and out-patients per day. [Recorded: May 2024 daily average: 229 in-patients + 215 out-patients].

It is the principal project of Shoe4Africa, a New York charity focused on creating better health and education outcomes in Eastern Africa. Kenya's Daily Nation reported that celebrities like Cristiano Ronaldo, Anthony Edwards, and Natalie Portman are some of the donors who supported the charity for the hospital.

The project is expected to cost two billion Kenyan shillings when completed.

Construction of a dedicated kitchen facility to be located next to the children's hospital started in 2016; it is planned to provide child-friendly nutrition for malnourished patients at the hospital.

In the summer of 2017, annexed buildings were constructed to alleviate overcrowding. The first was used as an immunization center for healthy children and HIV patients, while the second served as a play center to complement the four indoor playrooms. In 2018, a basketball court was added for patients and for medical school students. The charity announced that a soccer pitch would follow to help children rehabilitate, and in May 2019, an AstroTurf soccer pitch was opened. Later in the year, the Kuunga Mkono classrooms were added to the hospital, making the institution the first hospital in Africa to have children's classrooms inside its complex.

In 2022, Shoe4Africa celebrated treating its millionth patient.

Planned facilities

Construction of the Harry J. Dyer Burns Unit, a planned 35-bed center for treating burns, started in December 2023.

Also planned is a 152-bed pediatric cancer hospital, the Shoe4Africa Juli Anne Perry Children's Cancer Hospital, to be built next door to the children's facility to improve on the existing 30-bed ward space. Construction started in January 2024.