- In 1982, Dr. Dan Gikonyo was a lecturer at the UoN Faculty of Medicine, but sadly he lost his job after the revolution that sought to overthrow the former government of president Daniel Moi
- The indefatigable Gikonyo did not let this discourage him but traveled with his wife to Minneapolis in the United States, where they trained in cardiology.
- After returning to the country, Gikonyo started his practice in Tusker House with only two rooms but now boasts a large teaching hospital that trains cardiologists and nurses.
Nairobi: Cardiologist Dan Gikonyo has urged men to include their wise wives and children in family businesses so they can thrive.
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The man famous for treating the late president Mwai Kibaki, who was the deputy president Rigathi Gachaguapoliticians Charles Rubia, Koigi Wamwere and Kenneth Matiba said that history is full of women who built empires for their men.
Speaking at the 4th Annual Abojani Economic Empowerment Conference 2024, held on Saturday, November 23, 2024 at the Radisson Blue Hotel in Upperhill, Nairobi.
At the event, Gikonyo stressed that in a family business, you make a big investment by investing in the knowledge of your wife and children.
“History is full of people who were made by their wives,” he said.
Why did Gikonyo lose his job at UoN?
In 1982, Gikonyo was a lecturer at the University of Nairobi School of Medicine, but later there was a revolution, and some people lost their jobs. He decided to take time off and travel to the United States with his wife, Betty Gikonyo, to study at the University of Minneapolis.
“That's when the idea of building the Karen Hospital was born. For luck bad, some nuns from Moi's Bridge had a child with a serious heart disease and surgeons in Minneapolis had agreed to treat the child for free,” he participated.
“They asked me, I agreed. We took the child, he lived with us. They kept calling, asking us to welcome more children and we agreed; we saw the distress of many children coming and going and thought of starting a Foundation in Kenya to help them. And that's how the heart-to-heart foundation was established,” he added
Why Gikonyo and Betty returned to Kenya
Speaking to TUKO.co.ke, Gikonyo said he returned to Kenya to be with his parents and siblings.
“By the time I returned from the University of Minneapolis in 1986, there were very few cardiologists; there was more I could do for the community than in America, where there were hundreds of cardiologists,” he said.
“That does not mean that outsiders should come; there must be people out there who are developing the economy for us. I saw clarity, a vision that I could make a difference,” he said.
How was the trip to Karen Hospital?
When the couple returned to Kenya, they started a clinic in the two-room Tusker House. In the building, it was difficult to talk to the patients, especially when they were loading the crates. Then they built Reinsurance Plaza, and moved there…again two rooms.
“Later we went to Nairobi Hospital and we were doing well but we needed to be in a place where we could do the things we want,” said Gikonyo.
Karen was far away in the forest. When we started the journey there were obstacles as financial experts said that they will decrease within a year. When you start a business, people will tell you it won't work; listen to him,” he added.
How long have Gikonyo and Betty run the Karen hospital?
The cardiologist said that when you start a business, you must have an idea, consistency, a good, wise wife and God.
“You have to have a good wife. It starts with an idea, finding money and having a position,” he said and he had one because she is a wife he has done business with for 18 years.
“History is full of women who build empires for their husbands, if you find a strong family there is a painful woman who continues it, let's respect the female gender, they are our wives and daughters and let's make them part of society,” he added.
How did Gikonyo get money for the business?
When Gikonyo got the idea to build a hospital, he went to three banks, among them Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB), and Barclays, and they asked them why they wanted to start a hospital and what they knew about hospitals.
“In 1963, there were only four hospitals in Nairobi: Aga Khan, Nairobi Hospital, Kenyatta Hopsital and MP Shah hospital,” he said.
The doctor said that when doing business, one might think that the owner built it all at once, but it was one brick built every day.
“You must ensure that every product or service you have has standards, factories, production processes must meet strict criteria, and if it is medicine, make sure you provide the best medical service and your results are good,” he said.
Gikonyo also emphasized on building trust and loyalty to customers as well as ma
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Source: TUKO.co.ke
