Cuban Doctor: 'We Live Under Conditions That Are Hard to Endure'

Manuela García*, a pediatrician on the outskirts of Havana, walks past a photograph of Fidel Castro and a quote about Cuban doctors' "heroism and solidarity" as she enters her clinic each morning. "It sounds like mockery," she says. "Without our sacrifice, this system would have collapsed long ago."

García heads to the intensive care unit, donning her green uniform to attend to a four-year-old boy with severe pneumonia. The child has fluid in his chest, making his condition critical. García checks the drainage and ventilator, but notes the urgent need for a broad-spectrum antibiotic that is in short supply.

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It sounds like mockery. Without our sacrifice, this system would have collapsed long ago.

The scarcity extends beyond this specific medication. The clinic, like much of Cuba's healthcare system, faces a pervasive lack of medicines, surgical instruments, personnel, and diagnostic capabilities. Despite these overwhelming obstacles, the dedication of medical professionals like García remains the backbone of a system struggling to provide adequate care.

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But the boy urgently needs a broad-spectrum antibiotic. And those are in short supply.