HAVANA, May 30 (Reinaldo Cosano Alén) - Part of the roof of the "Mario
Muñoz" polyclinic in Guanabo, a beach town east of Havana, collapsed
May 15 after years of warnings about the building's condition at local Communist
Party meetings.
"Another part of the building collapsed a few days later. For five
years they have been talking about the urgent need to move the polyclinic to
another building..." said a source.
Recently the storage area of the "Mario Muñoz" was
relocated to another building five blocks away. Medical personnel now have to
walk and hand-carry supplies from one building to another.
"The X-ray department has been out of service for almost a year; the
equipment is broken and the technician was transferred to another polyclinic.
Patients requiring X-rays have to find their own way to other facilities closer
to the city, where they are not assured of service, either," said the
source.
The source added: "The ekg equipment is now working, but it was out of
commission for six months. There is always a need for nurses, technicians and
specialists to take care of the population. The only ones that don't have a
problem are the foreigners, because they pay in dollars."
Indeed, in nearby Santa María del Mar, there is a clinic for the
exclusive use of foreigners that has all the necessary equipment, supplies and
personnel to render excellent care. It even has an ambulance.
Versión
original en español
CubaNet does not require sole rights from its
contributors. We authorize the reproduction and distribution of this article as
long as the source is credited.
| 