By: Jennifer Ruth Hosek March 17, 2021 | + As the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately harms disadvantaged people around the world, Cuba’s “people over profit” approach has saved many lives, both on the island and abroad. From the beginning, Cuba’s approach has been holistic and integrated. His response is among the most respected in the world. Widespread reliance on the Cuban government’s scientific policies, public service media messages, and volunteering are key reasons why Cuba has been able to control the rate of viral reproduction until mass vaccination begins. The cash-strapped Caribbean island was at risk of opening up to holiday visitors in late 2020 and is currently managing a greater number of COVID-19 cases than ever before. Its health experts are combining international clinical trials of its vaccine candidates with mass production. Cuba is the only Latin American country with the capacity to manufacture a vaccine at the national level, in addition to Brazil, which is not doing so. Cuba aims to protect its population and then give away or sell its vaccines abroad. Before the arrival of the virus in Cuba, the country prepared for mitigation based on best practices from Asia and its own experience with contagious diseases. Beyond Cuba’s borders, his medical diplomacy took over. Cuba’s Henry Reeve Medical Brigade has been battling the pandemic in at least 37 countries and has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. When COVID-19 stranded the cruise ship MS Braemar, only Cuba allowed it to dock. In contrast, responses to the pandemic in many countries have been haphazard, with well-funded lobbyists representing restaurants and pharmaceutical companies, to name just two sectors, wielding undue influence. Oscillating virus reproduction rates have required costly and disruptive mitigation measures and have led to illness and death. The media, academics including Helen Yaffe, Emily Morris, and John Kirk, and nongovernmental organizations such as Havana and Oakland-based Medicc, have long documented Cuba’s health system worthy of emulation. Hard work, hard science Care in Cuba is universal, research and training are strong, and disease and disaster mitigation is well organized. The public health system is coordinated between research institutes and disease control centers, down to scattered local clinics. Cuba also has a literacy rate close to 100%, and much attention is paid to education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Cuba’s achievements are the result of hard work and science in a non-profit system. The trust of the population has been earned through scientific campaigns against people like HIV, Ebola, dengue, and the Zika virus. Nations that have responded well to the pandemic have communicated clearly and objectively with their people. Cuba has a tradition of multi-pronged public service messages. The country’s director of epidemiology has become a trusted domestic expert through his daily news reports. Every day at 9 a.m., a seated, masked Dr. Francisco Durán speaks directly to the public, noting and mourning each death, detailing the spread of the disease and treatments, answering questions from bystanders, and sternly advising continued compliance with the preventive measures. The renowned psychologist Manuel Calviño analyzes topics such as self-discipline and positive thinking. The liveliest venues feature famous actors urging fortitude and portraying groups of people following health protocols. In cartoons, angry “evil” viruses drown by washing their hands and blocked by masks, animation heroes celebrate International Workers’ Day from their balconies, young people stay home to protect their grandparents and families play together indoors. The 42nd International Festival of New Latin American Cinema, socially estranged, featured animated medical orders in its promotional video. The mottos, expressed in a ubiquitous way, sung and danced include “Cuba for life, with a new smile (masked)”. Animated cartoon characters participate in International Workers’ Day from home instead of Cuba’s annual parade in Plaza Revolución, courtesy of Animated ICAIC. Wearing masks is popular I interviewed residents of Havana online and then in person while in Cuba in December and January. Most reported wearing masks to “protect myself and others.” While masking has become widely politicized elsewhere, Cuba ordered masks in March 2020, immediately sharing instructions on how to make them at home. While in many countries volunteers struggled to find ways to help, in Cuba, existing organizations, such as neighborhood guards and universities, quickly jumped into action. Medical students have gone door to door looking for symptoms. Computer science students have developed useful applications and supported medical staff in their dormitories turned quarantine centers. The necessary work was done while public acceptance solidified mitigation efforts. The initial growth curve was reversed from the beginning. By relying on individual responsibility among its well-educated citizens, Cuba shifted to a “new normal” at the end of the year Christmas season. Tourists headed to isolated spas and expats to the homes of their relatives. Hotels follow health protocols meticulously: rapid PCR tests, masking, sanitation, and social distancing. But family visits sparked outbreaks, as they have around the world. Some visitors, many of them from areas with high infection rates and scientific denial such as Miami, violated the necessary protocols: a negative PCR test on arrival, a five-day home quarantine, and another negative PCR test before mingling. The pandemic has been costly All the indicators show that Cuba has made efficient use of its limited resources for the public good. But especially coupled with the tightening of the US blockade against Cuba by former US President Donald Trump, the pandemic and the resulting drop in tourism are costly. Shortages of affordable food and consumer goods, coupled with a rising cost of living accelerated by long-overdue monetary unification, have increased stress levels. Sensing an opportunity, foreign interest groups are supporting small, lively protests on social media and in person, most characterized by vociferous but vague demands for artistic freedom. Daily cases are also around 850 compared to 42 on November 15, 2020, just before the reopening of the Havana airport. Although the curve is flat again (exponential growth has stopped for the second time), medical staff and supplies are overloaded. In this context, however, are Cuba’s advances on the vaccination front. In this fast-paced race, Cuba is simultaneously running international phase 3 clinical trials of Soberana (Sovereignty) 2 and, scheduled for the end of March, Abdala, with strong production of these candidate vaccines. Work is also continuing on Soberana 1 and Mambisa. In the face of COVID-19 variants and reinfections, a Soberana Plus booster is now being developed. If Cuba’s vaccination program is successful, the country will once again have provided its people against enormous odds, as it produces and distributes a vaccine nationally and then shares it with the world. Many wealthy nations driven by the Global North market, including Canada, are not so well positioned. Cuba’s access to internationally produced vaccines was highly unlikely due to the US blockade. Its subsequent decision to make its own vaccines may pay off. (Taken from The Conversation / Translation Cubadebate)
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