By Arleen Rodríguez Derivet on August 17, 2020
Cuban President greets Medical Brigades from Togo and Kuwait. Photo: Estudio Revolucion
With “the tightest of embraces” and “the pride of being Cuban, which is strengthened by your example,” President Miguel Díaz Canel Bermúdez received the Henry Reeve Brigades, newly arrived from Kuwait (152 aid workers) and Togo (11), after overcoming countless human, cultural and professional challenges.
After hearing the returning group’s assessments and experiences in the protocol room of Cubanacán, in the west of the capital, Diaz Canel explained to them that while they were on the other side of the world, saving lives, the current U.S. administration, unable to protect its own citizens – who are the population most affected by COVID 19 anywhere on the planet – continued to denigrate Cuba’s health services, slandering the aid workers and pressuring every government that is interested in their work.
According to the Cuban President, it is precisely this example of solidarity, professionalism and effectiveness in saving lives that has been the greatest force in crushing the infamy promoted by the aggressive policy of the Trump government.
From the testimonies recounted by the health care workers of both groups, that of Kuwait, the most numerous brigades, and that of Togo, one of the smallest groups to have faced the pandemic, that initially the main difficulty was the language barrier, but in both countries it was quickly overcome.
In the case of Kuwait, they served the non-native population, 90 percent of whom spoke only Arabic. This was explained by Dr Gilberto Parra, coordinator of the returning group who was impressed by the way the patients of the Cubans greeted them, cheering on Fidel, Raul and the Cuban Revolution, and by Dr Anabel Perera, MGI, only 28 years old, the youngest of the brigade, who recounted the challenge of arriving believing that they would not understand each other and ended up speaking some Arabic, enjoying the spiciness of their dishes and left feeling like their patients were brothers and sisters.
Jesús Romero, a nurse from Artemisa who specializes in intensive care and emergencies, explained very graphically his pride in the mission which, in addition to the language barrier, facing the challenge of technology they had no experience with.
“We had very little time to train, but working day by day, we got it. We saved 189 lives, we did thousands of nursing procedures. Kuwait was our Moncada, our Granma, our Girón and I think with our efforts we also honored the name of Henry Reeve”.
In the midst of the specialized narrative, a different story was heard. Gamar Israel Toyo Girado, a Santi Spíritus’ English teacher who works in service delivery, explained what a teacher does among doctors and nurses. His mission was no less difficult, “because every foreigner in Kuwait speaks English but with different accents and intonation. Add that to the technological terminology. And he did it well: “What got us through was our knowledge first, but also our Cuban education,” he said, obviously satisfied with his work.
This first group of 152 health workers from all the provinces, who returned from Kuwait on July 6 and have just overcome the Cuban quarantine, stayed in that Middle Eastern country for one month, attending a 254-bed field hospital which received 758 patients of them they served 189 in critical condition whose lives where saved.
For the first time in Togo
The numbers of the small brigade that went to Togo are very impressive: 2,767 medical interventions and 146 lives saved, 79.3 of those admitted. In intensive care they managed to recover 16 of the 19 patients they treated in critical or severe condition, for a survival rate of over 84 percent. This feat was done with 11 health professionals, three women and eight men, who in three months changed history. It’s a saying here but it’s a fact.
Before the arrival of that small group in April, there had been no Cuban medical collaboration with Togo. There were, however, young Togolese ELAM graduates, a blessing for the Cuban brigade.
According to Dr Miguel Gomez Cruz, the brigade leader, they arrived in the West African country last April 12 with three challenges: to break the language barriers, to provide quality medical assistance and to return alive.
“We overcame all three challenges thanks to Fidel. Four Togolese men in their twenties, graduates of ELAM, with excellent preparation and knowledge of our therapeutic procedures, accompanied us. By the time we completed our first month there, all doors were open to us”.
In close contact with their African colleagues, the Cubans managed to change protocols, train staff in the use of protective suits, organize the workflow, give workshops to share their knowledge. They toured the three most affected regions of the country, visited hospitals, collaborating with community and religious leaders. The highest authorities in Togo congratulated, thanked and rewarded them for their dedication. The President of the country called our President to thank Cuba for this intense and contributing cooperation.
The fact is better understood when one listens to one of the young doctors, Yanela Rodriguez, from Santiago de Cuba, who visited seven municipalities in one week. During her travels she discovered that the population had no knowledge of COVID 19, nor did they use masks. At her suggestion, homemade masks were made and circulated and fines were imposed on those who did not use them. In less than a month, Togo had the pandemic under control. Yanela smiles and added: “in a country where women don’t count, they listened and accepted the proposals of a Cuban woman”.
Other experience from Kuwait and Togo, where Cuba’s health cooperation was launched, is being shown now on La Luz de la Memoria on National Cuban TV. The series is called En Zona Blanca, in homage to all those who fulfill a medical mission inside or outside Cuba, honoring the white coats that identify them as doctors, nurses, who wherever they go, leave with their solidary work “a significant trail of gratitude towards Cuban medicine,” in the words of the Cuban President.
Source: Cubadebate, translation Resumen Latinoamerica, North America bureau
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