HAVANA, August 2 (Héctor Maseda, Grupo Decoro) – Conditions in Cuban hospitals are depressingly dismal, according to reports filtering out of the island.
Getting sick, for the average Cuban, may mean being pushed to the hospital in a wooden wheelbarrow because there is no fuel for a proper ambulance. Once there, having taken his or her own bed linens and maybe a fan to help hope with the stifling heat since there is typically no air conditioning
in the wards, the patient finds generally dirty surroundings, cockroaches, lack of running water and stopped-up or broken toilets. There have been reports of intruders stealing the patients' personal belongings, such as fans and radios, sometimes at knifepoint.
The food, if it is provided, is so poor that relatives usually bring something from home. Laboratory tests requiring imported reagents will more than likely not be performed, and many of the medicines prescribed by the doctors are not available, either in the hospital or in the pharmacy.
Not surprisingly, patients often choose to follow a course of treatment at home, if at all possible.
Versión original en español
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