Pathways and Barriers to Diabetes Screening: Observations from Rural Kenya

The rise of diabetes in Kenya presents many challenges to a healthcare system struggling to deal with communicable diseases such as HIV and malaria. The lack of a proper system in place to quickly and effectively diagnose diabetes, especially in remote areas, has led to many preventable complications and a rapid increase in diabetes-related hospital admissions. Based on a review of literature and governmental reports, as well as fieldwork conducted in Nyeri, Kenya, this article describes patient screening and diagnosis pathways. The diverse human factors, technology challenges and systemic issues that impede the timely and widespread screening of diabetics are described in details. An understanding of the patient landscape and specific failure modes can inform technological, business and policy innovations to lower barriers to diabetes screening, diagnosis and management.