The Minister of Public Health of Cuba, José Ángel Portal Miranda, called to take advantage of the potential of teamwork as a guarantee for better services that impact the health of the people of Las Tunas, during the annual balance of the sector corresponding to 2023.
The minister also urged us to take on this year with the mentality of changing strategies to have positive results on health indicators "Do things better because the population needs and deserves it," he emphasized.
Portal Miranda called to specify the lines of work that the province must follow to raise the quality of services and stated that, unfortunately, many of the issues that cause discomfort to patients not only have to do with the scarcity of resources suffered by the sector but with the lack of empathy and sensitivity of health personnel.
Following the presentation of the report that summarized the results of the work of the last calendar in the province, the minister was interested in the training of future generations of professionals in MedicalSsciences. He pointed out that the teaching process should not be neglected and that it is not about increasing numbers but about guaranteeing optimal relief to “the army in white coats.”
He also referred to the need for rescue services in municipal hospitals and the imperative to train local human resources to meet the demands of the territory. “The actions have to resemble the scenario in which they are going to take place,” the leader insisted.
Despite recognizing the significant performance of the sector in the province during 2023, a year that he classified as very complex due to the shortage of inputs and the fluctuation of personnel, Portal Miranda insisted that deficiencies persist in the organization of services; as well as in the implementation of key processes -both in primary and secondary health care- that generate dissatisfaction in the population.
He acknowledged that the province did not end the last calendar with good results in the Maternal and Child Program, even though the low birth weight rate decreased and an infant mortality rate of 7.4 per thousand live births was achieved. He highlighted the high prevalence of teenage pregnancies, an issue that led to the results not being as expected.
Portal Miranda called for better adjustment of protocols to achieve effective hospital management that is based on taking advantage of the human and material resources that exist today, to guarantee the working conditions of the staff and the stability and quality of services.
He emphasized that 2024 would also be a complex year, marked by the intensification of the blockade, although he commented that thanks to a reinforcement of State financing in the first half of the year there will be an increase in resources for services.
He urged them to work with commitment and sensitivity and assured them that, despite all material limitations, it is necessary to be intransigent with insensitivity, irresponsibility, and negligence.
During his stay in Las Tunas and in exchange with the main health, political, and government authorities of the territory, the Minister emphasized the need to raise the quality of the educational and research teaching process and, at the same time, to instill in the students the values of ethics and sensitivity that distinguish Cuban doctors around the world.
