Healthcare professionals

Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital is the leading pediatric hospital in Eastern and Central Africa, serving over 300,000 patients annually across a network of 14 medical centers in Nairobi and three in other counties. GCH also caters to referrals from neighboring countries.

The GCH Research Centre drives the hospital’s mission by conducting high-quality research to improve pediatric healthcare and influence public policy. With over a decade of experience in multinational and multi-country studies, the center aims to be a regional leader in pediatric research. Supported by a dedicated team and the GCH Ethics Research Committee, the center ensures excellence in all research phases.

Research Team

Principal Investigator

Prof. Jesse Githang’a

Jessie Githanga is an Associate Professor in the Department of Human Pathology, University of Nairobi, Kenya. She has over 30 years teaching experience at the Faculty of Medicine and provision of clinical services in haematology and paediatric oncology at the Kenyatta National Hospital.
She is a researcher at Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital where she has been a principal investigator in several multinational clinical trials focusing on sickle cell disease since 2013.
Prof. Jesse Githang’a
Principal Investigator
In the public sector, she has been a member of several Ministry of Health technical working groups (TWG) in sickle cell disease and childhood cancer. She was a member of the TWG writing up guidelines for SCD in Kenya and is a member of the National TWG for childhood cancer. She is a Founder Member College of Pathologists of East, Central and Southern Africa; Kenya Society for Haematology and Oncology; Board Member of the Kenya Network of Cancer Organizations; founder trustee/board member of Kenya Childhood Cancer Trust. She has received various awards for professionalism and service including from Kenya Society for Haematology and Oncology (2022), Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital (2023) and the CEO Global award for Most Influential Women in Africa and the Lifetime Achievement Regional Award for Education and Training (2015).