People of AMPATH: Dr. Jeremiah Laktabai

Q: What is your role with AMPATH?

I co-lead the population health department of AMPATH. I also oversee the activities of the AMPATH chronic disease management program, which is part of population health.

 Q: Tell us about your background?

I am a family physician and the chair of the family medicine department, Moi University. I previously worked in different government hospitals as a clinician and administrator.

 Q: How do you engage in AMPATH’s three areas of care, training and research?

I am part of the leadership implementing AMPATH’s model of care called Population Health. This model of care integrates all areas of health and brings sustainability to care.

Research is very important to me, and I publish often with collaborators, mainly within the AMPATH Research Network. A recent example is our work published in the largest HIV journal on adapting HIV care systems to treat non-communicable diseases.

 Regarding training, I am a lecturer at Moi University’s College of Health Sciences in Family Medicine and enjoy teaching.

Q: How do you describe AMPATH?

Here in Kenya, AMPATH is a phenomenon, a movement, that responds to the needs of the community with a conscience. We’re more than just a building or a program. We are working in community health, HIV, chronic disease management and more, always with the community at the center of our work.  

AMPATH has grown tremendously with our successful efforts to treat and stop the spread of HIV. This HIV success is our “good currency” that we’ve been able to use to keep innovating and to grow our impact in many areas of health for the community. So the next frontier for us is population health.

 Q: Tell us more about Population Health.

AMPATH has always defined health beyond just physical discomfort. And our package of care has responded to needs at so many levels. Look at education, table-banking, wealth creation, farming, water, community engagement, and AMPATH is there. Our vision for true community health has always gone beyond medical care.

Population health makes this vision integrated, comprehensive and sustainable through our three pillars. One, access to a strong and effective care system. Two, economic empowerment through GISHE groups, agriculture and food production, and more. And three, universal health insurance that creates a partnership with the National Hospital Insurance Fund and ensures families can afford care.  These three elements together are bringing sustainability to our vision of health.

Q: What do you think is special about AMPATH?

One thing that I find special is that we are doing things differently without fear. And we are always driven by what the community needs as a whole by offering value to our clients at every level of health – physical, mental, economic and more.

Dr. Jeremiah Laktabai (middle) with AMPATH staff and community members at a population health screening in Turbo.