A 13-member medical contingent from Cuba will arrive on Montserrat on Tuesday July 21, 2020, and will begin working in the Ministry of Health and Social Services following a quarantine period.
The arrival of the medical contingent is in direct response to a request from the Government of Montserrat to the Republic of Cuba in March 2020 for medical support for COVID-19. The request was based on the experience of the Cuban medical personnel in coping with disasters and serious epidemics worldwide, and the need for the deployment of personnel in different medical care settings on island to support our health system.
The request came to fruition on 14th July 2020 when the Minister of Health and Social Services, Charles T Kirnon, and Minister of Health, Republic of Cuba, Dr. Jose’ Angel Portal Miranda, both signed the Cooperation Agreement which permits the team to be deployed for work in Montserrat for a period of three months.
The contingent is comprised of eight general nurses and five doctors with varied specialties to include anaesthesia, internal medicine, paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology and a general medicine practitioner.
While on island, the public can expect to see the medical team fully utilized in conducting specialists clinics, working in the hospital and in the district health centres.
Permanent Secretary of Health, Mrs. Camille Thomas- Gerald described the team’s arrival as timely.
“The team will support our currently understaffed work force, who for the past few months have worked under extenuating circumstances. Our local health team will now have an opportunity for much needed respite while the team is here. We also have the opportunity to use this resource to build the capacity and resilience of our health care service to respond to outbreaks,” stated Mrs. Thomas Gerald.
Cuba has a long history of international medical outreach and during this current COVID-19 pandemic has extended assistance to a number of countries both regionally and internationally.
