While the world sat around and wondered what they could do to support Haitians after the earthquake, Cuban doctors were already at work. Since the late 1990's Cuban doctors have had a presence in Haiti, and have also been training Haitian doctors. At the time of the earthquake in Haiti, 402 Cuban internationalists, 302 of them medical personnel, had already been helping Haitians. These together with many of the 500 Haitian doctors who had been trained in Cuba free of charge formed the essential early group of lifesavers, attending to 1,102 Haitian patients in the first 24 hours after the earthquake. They have continued their work, boosted by an additional medical brigade which arrived promptly from Cuba. In this interview, Omme speaks with Nin Paglicia from the Canada Network on Cuba about the work of Cuban doctors in Haiti and the international Cuban doctors program.
Interview Conducted and edited by Omme Salma Rahemtullah