Government Information Service

by Emmanuel H. Joseph
Government Information Service

The Government of Dominica is expressing gratitude to the many Cuban doctors and nurses who have come to Dominica to assist in providing healthcare to the island’s people.

On Wednesday 4th March, 2009, the Ministry of Health held a special recognition ceremony for the Cuban medical collaborators. According to Valencia Laville-Williams, Hospital Services Coordinator, the services of the outgoing medical personnel were well received and that the hospital was grateful for the work rendered.

“The reason we are here today is to say goodbye to the doctors and nurses from Cuba from the Cuban Technical Assistance Programme who have worked in Dominica over the years giving quality care to the nationals of Dominica and to say welcome to those who have replaced them. We are all aware of the shortages we have experienced in providing care to the sick and the presence of the Cuban doctors and nurses was well received and appreciated by all those you have touched in one way or the other.”

Mrs. Laville-Williams went on to thank the medical personnel for their dedication and outstanding work.

“On behalf of the Administration of the Princess Margaret Hospital, we say to those of you who are leaving us, ‘Thank you very much for your dedication and hard work over the years and we wish you all a safe journey back home...We will miss you all dearly. To those who are replacing them, we welcome you to Dominica and to the Princess Margaret Hospital. We look forward to working with you and to make your stay here an enjoyable and fruitful one’.”

Hon. John Fabien, Minister for Health and Environment, told the medical teams from Cuba that they have made a significant contribution to Dominica despite working under conditions that are not the best in the world.

“You have sacrificed a lot to be here. Those of you who have been here for two or three years, you have sacrificed your family, friends and country to come here. There are countries with better conditions than what we have here, but despite that, you have stayed here. However, I must say to you that those of you who have been in here, you have made a tremendous contribution to the health care services and we will be eternally grateful to you.”

The group of Cuban doctors and nurses now returning to Cuba are the ones who assisted in the proper functioning of the Diagnostic Centre in Portsmouth and the Intensive Care Unit at the Princess Margaret Hospital.

His Excellency Oswaldo Cobacho Martinez, Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba, said that as a result of their efforts, a total of three hundred and twenty-eight (328) Dominican lives have been saved due to the effective operations of both entities during the past two years.

Ambassador Martinez also took the time off to share some statistics as to the operations of the Diagnostic Center at Portsmouth.

“For instance, in Portsmouth in the Comprehensive Diagnostic Center, the statistics that I have are from September 2006 to February 2009. A total of four thousand, nine hundred and fifty-three (4953) ultra sounds were conducted, four hundred and ninety-three (493) X-ray examinations were performed, two hundred and seventy-six (276) endoscopies, ten thousand, six hundred and eighty-three (10683) general lab tests were also performed. The medical team there conducted seven thousand, four hundred and thirty-two (7432) consultations, received ninety-six (96) patients in the UCI (Center for Urinary Tract Infection). Another four thousand, three hundred and seventy-four (4374) ECG’s were conducted while ten thousand, three hundred and forty-seven (10347) nursing procedures were done in general.

Hon. Vince Henderson, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Immigration and Labour, extended congratulatory remarks to the Cuban doctors for making such a meaningful contribution to Dominica’s health sector. He also expressed the sentiment to see relationship between Dominica and Cuba be strengthened.

“And we are very grateful in the Dominica to benefit from this cooperation. We established diplomatic relations with the Republic of Cuba in 1996 but we have enjoyed the benefits of good relations with Cuba since 1979...things have gotten better and today, we are here embracing our brothers and sisters from Cuba as we ought to do because Cuba is in fact part of the Caribbean. We share a common history; therefore, we must continue to ensure that we can strengthen the relationship between Dominica and Cuba.”

At Wednesday’s ceremony, the Cuban doctors and nurses received certificates and tokens of appreciation from the ministry of health. Over the past thirty years, Dominica has been able to train a number of its people in Cuba in various fields.