A child’s imagination is a powerful tool that can move mountains and summon superhuman strength. Muthoni Gitata was gifted with one such colourful imagination that she used to liven up her playtime when growing up in Thogoto. One day, she saw a doctor from nearby Kikuyu Hospital smartly clad in a white lab coat, with a stethoscope hanging around his neck going around her village tending to the sick. By simply witnessing a health worker at work, Muthoni knew that she wanted to become a doctor too. Afterwards, her playtimes revolved around make-belief games playing doctor, with Muthoni administering wild berries plucked from nearby bushes as medicine to her “ailing patients”.
The Good Samaritan
After sitting the Common Entrance Exam, Muthoni joined Kikuyu Girls’ Intermediate Boarding School. This was an exciting time for her since she was transitioning from being a day scholar at Thogoto Primary School. Just as she was about to start this new phase of her education, misfortune befell her family when her mother was arrested for moving from Kikuyu to Nairobi without a pass in search of work. With the family bread winner locked away, Muthoni’s hope for the future began to crumble.
Thankfully, this turn of events was brought to the attention of the Child Welfare Society of Kenya. The welfare officer who took up this case was Jemimah Gecaga. Beyond advocating for Muthoni’s full fee payment, Jemimah took Muthoni in and ensured that her schooling would not be interrupted. For a year Muthoni resided with her foster family until an opportunity to apply for enrollment at Abbot Academy in Massachusetts came about. Jemimah encouraged Muthoni to sit for the qualifying exam, which she excelled at. In September 1960, this Kenyan girl was in the USA chasing a dream born of her imagination.
Girl Meets World
For the three years that Muthoni attended Abbot Academy, she was the only black girl. It was an unnerving experience to be plucked out of a familiar setting and dropped into an environment so foreign to her, but this did not deter her from focusing on her studies. Rather, she took this opportunity to expand her pool of knowledge, particularly about health work. In an interesting twist of fate, Muthoni was hosted by a family who had a father (head of household) working as a dentist. Her interest was piqued, and she began to learn more about the world of oral health and practice from him.
It was no surprise that when Muthoni sat her Grade 12 exams she performed exceedingly well, particularly in the sciences. Banking on her strengths in school as well as her dreams, she joined Annhurst College where she majored in biology. Upon her graduation in 1967, she proceeded to Temple University in Philadelphia for her master’s degree in virology. Because she was still determined to study dentistry and there was no dental school in East Africa at the time, her only option was to remain abroad and complete her studies there. With her brilliant academic track record, she landed a scholarship from the World Health Organization to join the School of Dentistry at Meharry Medical College in 1969. Four years later, she had completed her coursework, and with her DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery) degree, she was ready to return to her home country and begin working in earnest. Little did she know that the achievement of being Kenya’s first female dentist and oral surgeon of African descent awaited her.
Struggles of Being a First
While her accomplishment was certainly a welcome surprise, it came with very grievous territory. Dr. Gitata began working at Kenyatta National Hospital’s Dental Unit, where she experienced constant struggles due to her race, gender, and small physique. Health workers of other races were dismissive of her capabilities while patients were downright rude. Her greatest allies during this time were her African male colleagues who, having studied abroad as well, were all too familiar with discrimination. Muthoni had to prove herself several times over, but she steeled herself whenever she faced prejudice and kept on going. During her time at Kenyatta National Hospital, she built such a strong reputation for herself that when she resigned to start her private practice in 1978, many of her patients became her first client base.
Health work is a very demanding field, and through the years, Dr. Gitata has given her profession her all. Setting up her own practice gave her a better work-life balance and the chance to be more present in her children’s lives. It also gave her a space where she could offer internship training to young dentists, especially female dentists, as they began their professional journeys.
We applaud Dr. Muthoni Gitata for paving the way and giving other women a chance to shine!
#KeFemaleFirsts