Ruto Suspends Mediheal Founder Swarup Mishra as Chair of Kenya BioVax Institute

President William Ruto has suspended, with immediate effect,  Mediheal Hospital founder, Dr Swarup Mishra, as chairman of the Kenya BioVax Institute.

Ruto said the suspension made on Friday, April 18, “shall remain in force pending the outcome of investigations into serious allegations of unethical and illegal activities involving kidney transplant procedures at Mediheal Hospital and Fertility Centre in Eldoret”.

The hospital was founded by Dr Mishra.

“The President reaffirms the Government’s commitment to fighting corruption, including upholding integrity in healthcare, public safety, and justice for victims,” the statement read in part.

Ruto Suspends Mishra

This comes hours after Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale suspended all kidney transplant services at Mediheal Group of Hospitals. The suspension took effect immediately, pending further investigations into the hospital’s transplant procedures.

Additionally, two top ministry officials linked to the saga were suspended.

Patients seeking kidney transplant services were advised to visit other licensed facilities cleared to conduct such procedures within the country, including Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, and Aga Khan University Hospital.

Other medical institutions include Tenwek Mission Hospital, Eldoret Hospital, Coptic Hospital, and Nairobi West Hospital, among others.

Also Read: Mediheal Hospital Responds to Claims of Organ Trafficking

The woes Mediheal hospital is facing began late 2019 after Mishra was accused of using the establishments as a front for trafficking human body parts. 

However, in January 2020, he sent a statement to the media refuting claims of being in the business of trading in human body parts.

Also, he denied using Indian specialists at the hospital who were part of a larger conspiracy to traffic body parts.

Expose Links Mediheal Hospital to Organ Trafficking

A special investigation by German media outlets Deutsche Welle (DW), German media ZDF, and ‘Der Spiegel’ exposed Kenya as being at the center of a suspected international organ trafficking syndicate.

The report identified Mediheal Hospital as a key site for transplant procedures, revealing that recipients paid up to $200,000 (Ksh25.9 million) for a single kidney transplant.

The investigation traced the journeys of both organ sellers and recipients, analyzed key documents, and interviewed whistleblowers and medical professionals.

It uncovered a global network stretching from a hospital in Kenya to a shadowy agency in Germany that lured patients in need of transplants — a system that exploited the vulnerable at both ends young individuals driven by financial desperation, and older recipients desperate for a life-saving organ.

Subsequently, the Ministry of Health released findings from a government-led investigation into Mediheal Hospital and Fertility Centre.

Report Exposes Unapproved Sample Exports, and High-Risk Kidney Transplants

The report uncovered significant gaps in the facility’s kidney transplant program and raised fresh concerns about possible organ trafficking involving foreign nationals.

The findings revealed that the licensed Level 5 private hospital in Eldoret had performed 372 kidney transplants over a five-year span.

While the majority of recipients came from Kenya and neighboring East African countries, others had traveled from as far as Israel, Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Also Read: Duale Shuts Down Mediheal Kidney Transplant Services

Although the hospital was found to have adopted advanced surgical techniques—conducting nearly all transplants laparoscopically and retaining signed donor consent forms—investigators flagged several critical issues.

“A key concern was the weak verification of donor-recipient relationships. The hospital lacked proper documentation to establish biological or relational ties, especially in cross-national pairings,” said CS Duale.

Further, the CS said that all Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) testing by the facility was conducted in India without the Ministry’s clearance for exporting human samples, a breach of regulatory protocols.

The report also highlighted that several donors and recipients who could not understand English were presented with untranslated documents, undermining the integrity of the informed consent process.

Moreover, some high-risk transplants were conducted—including on a patient with confirmed prostate cancer and others at extreme age limits—despite questionable donor-recipient compatibility.

However, in a media interview, Mediheal Group of Hospitals Vice President Maryline Limo dismissed allegations that transplants performed at the facility are not conducted procedurally. 

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