Nurse Litu offers more than medical care; she provides emotional support, walking with families through their darkest days. For her, it’s not just about treatment—it’s about bringing a little light to the journey, one smile at a time.
At Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral & Research Hospital (KUTRRH), Nurse Linda Litu walks a delicate path—offering medical care and emotional support to children fighting cancer and their families.
Her day begins at 7.30 AM with reports from the night shift. The team prioritises the sickest patients first, coordinates with pharmacists, and prepares families for possible side effects of treatment. Doctors remain on call for complications.
Litu cares for children aged 0–19 and also uses play therapy as part of their healing. “We talk to the patients… and involve the doctor,” she says, highlighting the team approach.
But it’s the children’s smiles that keep her going. “Even in the most trying of circumstances,” she says, “those smiles are everything.”
Beyond her technical duties, she becomes a pillar of strength for families, helping them through a storm of fear and uncertainty. “We involve them in care from day one,” she adds.
Some moments stand out—like the little girl who topped her class after treatment, or the day she discharged four cancer-free patients.
Still, there are hard days. “Kids get affected by the drugs,” she admits. Weekly debriefs and team-building help the nurses cope. “It helps a lot.”
For Litu, nursing is more than a job. “It’s a calling. I love what I do. The smiles of these kids keep me going.”
To her fellow nurses, she says: “We knew what we were getting into. Let’s keep going—and have fun with our patients.”
