Volunteer Cuban Doctors Tend Sick Children in Haiti
- From: NY_Transfer_News@xxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 17 Aug 2006 11:47:44 GMT
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1
Volunteer Cuban Doctors Tend Sick Children in Haiti
Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit
Dominican Today - Aug 16, 2006
http://www.dominicantoday.com/app/article.aspx?id=16449
Volunteer doctors from Cuba tend sick children in Haiti
Port-au-Prince.? "It hurts me to see children die before they even had a
chance to live," says Estrella Torres, one of 600 Cuban doctors who work in
Haiti, where life expectancy is only 52 years.
Haiti, with a population of just eight million people, is the poorest
country in [the] western hemisphere.
Its sanitation system is also the weakest in the Caribbean basin, and the
central region of Haiti where Torres works is the most affected by public
health problems.
Eighteen Cuban doctors work in this area.
In the pediatric clinic of the small community of Cange, about 140
kilometers (87 miles) east of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, this
55-year-old pediatrician sees dozens of sick children every day, brought by
parents who are sometimes as sick as the babies.
Children's cries tear the heavy atmosphere.
Many Haitians are unable to afford the costly services of Haitian doctors.
Wait time to be seen by one of the Cuban doctors can be hours.
"I take care of children who suffer from tuberculosis, AIDS or
malnutrition," explains Torres.
"There is a lot of poverty and hunger here," she explains. "The children do
not receive enough milk and often they die early."
Forty-two percent of Haitian children under the age of five suffer from
moderate to serious stunted growth.
About 28 percent of deaths among children under five are caused by
malnutrition and diarrhea, according to a UN report.
"In Cuba this problem does not exist," says Torres. "This problem was
resolved in the 1970s."
She is glad the country now has a food distribution program launched by the
World Food Program.
"My mission is a big life lesson," points out Torres, a native of Olguin
[Holguin?] province located east of Havana.
During her stay in Haiti, she worked with her Haitian colleagues.
"We exchanged professional information and work techniques," she says. "I
have the impression that our presence here has helped improve the level of
health care in the country."
In return, she has learned to speak Creole, the language used by the
majority of Haitians, which has helped her better integrate in the community
and fulfill her mission.
Reaching now the end of her stay in Haiti, she is looking forward to
returning to Cuba where she will see her own children and her grandson. But
she hopes that [the] situation for Haitian children will improve one day.
She dreams of taking a vacation and going to the beach, but is anxious to
find out if another Cuban doctor will come to replace her.
Cuba also receives hundreds of Haitian students, who come to the island to
study medicine and agriculture.
*
================================================================
NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems
Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us
Search Archives: http://olm.blythe-systems.com/htdig/search.html
List Archives: http://olm.blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/
Subscribe: http://olm.blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr
================================================================
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: GnuPG v1.4.2.2 (FreeBSD)
iQCVAwUBRORWwUamV5Um0R3tAQJwrwP/a/bFXLl8+uq197gswriNIqTE6NYGhcI0
ZViWvoGeIuPWhrY6oXtkCHeQZxkzYCSImnh0J8+ZNWXd+/oHTYepd/9Ftnj5PkEo
HzXypNGQ6XPidmCmVS5zosKXYoG2JzezdPLrvU6QSRVqSXOnJagc6P2sF0HkuB6X
srYSA6E2LPM=
=KGUv
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
.
- Prev by Date: Haïti / Le gouvernement décide d'incarcérer les haïtiens déportés
- Next by Date: Rappel - Rencontre annuelle sur Haïti
- Previous by thread: Haïti / Le gouvernement décide d'incarcérer les haïtiens déportés
- Next by thread: Rappel - Rencontre annuelle sur Haïti
- Index(es):
Relevant Pages
|
