State and Society
Serious Problems in Guantánamo ’ s Health System
Rolando Tudela Iribar Former Political Prisoner and Independent Trade Unionist Guantánamo , Cuba
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ince some time ago and very often , medical care in Cuba ’ s easternmost province is going from bad to worse . Cuba is trumpeted as medical power and as referent for many Spanish-speaking countries in America . Biotechnological achievements have placed the island among the leading group of developed countries in this scientific area . It ’ s nothing more but the fact that we are incredibly capable and competent in medical sciences despite everything related to the embargo or blockade . Still , things seem to be working without any logic . I will focus on my home town and actual residence place , Guantanamo , where things are not going well in the medical field . The region has been going through dengue , cholera and other epidemics for more than a decade . I must be as sincere as possible , since the government has allocated all kinds of resources for developing modern medicine despite certain economic circumstances , but it contrasts with what is happening more and more frequently . It ’ s alarming , given the negligent and indolent nature reflected by the facts . There are well-documented cases that caused anger and frustration among the people affected by the lack of response to their demands . These cases have resulted in permanent damage for and even the death of the patients . Many of them had to undergo surgery more than once , with the consequent psychological damage for both the affected persons and their relatives .
The ills are greater because unease , fear and mistrust are growing among the population . Often , we heard comments about negligent doctors and nurses , who are seeking pecuniary benefits and yearn a medical mission abroad to make some money for solving their economic needs . For them it doesn ’ t matter much to provide an iota of care and attention to the people herein . There are testimonies about doctors who provide better attention because they take a gift . Even pigs and ewes are well accepted . There are also unbelievable , but true reports about complications after Caesarean sections , like serious infectious forcing the return to the emergency room because of gauze , surgical gloves and even surgical clamps carelessly left inside the woman ’ s body . It is so creepy and dramatic what happens at General University Teaching Hospital Agostino Neto that its Room 5- C ( Room C on the 5th floor ) is popularly called Room 8 , the Spanish title for the American film Coma ( 1978 ), which was about a clinic room designed to kill people for selling their organs . I ’ m personally involved in one case and it motivated me to write despite the risks associated with addressing health care issues , which are taboos under the government policy aimed to staunchly defend the achievements by the Cuban medicine without allowing anyone to question them . The truth is just one and silence is neither good nor brave . I reserve name and address of the
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