Rambling Onwards

Day 1: Lake Eucumbene from Old Adaminaby

The Snowy Mountains were beautiful, especially with the weather we had. We also drove to Perisher Valley on the second day, built a snowman, learnt to snowboard and had fun. Next time I'm learning to ski...

After I wrote and published my last post (you can read it here if you haven't already), I didn't expect anyone to read it. Why? Because the content is not what you find people reading for leisure, and the style of writing wasn't that engaging (or so I think). But people have still read it, and it ended up on Tuberculosis Daily for Tuesday 23rd June which has a frequently updated collection of articles about tuberculosis.

My blog post was included in Tuberculosis Daily in the Health Section!

This was such a surprise - as I said I didn't expect anyone to read the post, but if you found it interesting then, as always, let me know in the comments or on Twitter.

And that's enough about me (sorry about the segue-way, might write an update post later) - read on for the much anticipated post on Cuba's health care system...

Havana, Cuba. Photo from Huffington Post.

Cuba's health care system is one that focuses on preventative and primary health care, unlike many western countries that focus on treating diseases. There's a difference there already - the more people who do not catch an illness or develop a disease, the lower the costs of running a health care system as less people end up in hospital requiring treatment and expensive medicine.

Every block has an assigned family doctor who lives in a small, two-storey house in the neighbourhood. The bottom floor is used to receive patients and the top floor becomes the doctor's living quarters. They ensure that every child receives the proper vaccinations and that every pregnant woman has a monthly check-up, blood tests and other tests. Cuba's medical staff put healing above personal wealth - they view it as one of the most fulfilling activities a person can do.

5th year student participating in primary care in Havana, Cuba. Photo by Joanna Mae Souers.

It shows that a lack of resources doesn't necessarily mean a lack of access to healthcare - instead it shows that political leaders don't have the will to protect those that are most vulnerable. This is really obvious with the US healthcare system - we frequently hear stories of people not being treated for something easily curable because they couldn't afford healthcare.

Cuba's system is called the medicina general integral (MGI) or comprehensive general medicine and Cuban doctors are very aware that lives are saved through preventive medicine like nutrition and hygiene and that traditional cultures have their own healing wisdom. But in our Western world, natural and alternative approaches aren't always trusted or the first choice and instead costly diagnostic and treatment techniques are used first.

It doesn't help that people like Belle Gibson falsely claim to have a brain tumour and then promotes healthy eating as a method as a cure, gains the trust of millions and capitalises her story through her app and companion cookbook The Whole Pantry - and many also think that she's driven true cancer sufferers away from using conventional medicine and treatments.

But their healthcare system does come with problems. Doctors are lowly paid and opportunities are limited - many Cuban specialists feel that they are falling behind as they don't have the same opportunities as their overseas peers to travel and attend conferences and to read journals on the latest medical advances (Source: Al Jazeera). This leads to many doctors leaving the country looking for better opportunities abroad - a brain drain.

I'll finish with an update:
It seems like I've been putting off this blog post for a while and it's been quite difficult to write - but I promise you that I've been busy with uni and work and being on holiday. But friends, I'M BACK - and I've got some blog posts lined up so make sure you follow me or my blog somewhere so you don't miss them!