MEC welcomes Cuban doctors to Limpopo

POLOKWANE – To ensure this does not affect the quality of healthcare received by patients, MEC for health, Dr Phophi Ramathuba, welcomed 22 new Cuban doctors to Limpopo’s healthcare last Friday.

This brings the number of Cuban doctors in the province to 57.

“We bring in these doctors to assist us in implementing preventative healthcare at our facilities. The doctors are expected to treat the patients holistically and should be the people’s doctor,” said Ramathuba.

“These doctors will not only focus on the disease that has been brought to their attention by the patients, but also check on the cause and related diseases to ensure we prevent future outbreaks.”

She added that along with the placement of Cuban doctors at the regional hospitals, the number of referrals to Ga-Rankuwa Hospital has reduced by approximately 50%.

“The presence of the Cuban doctors assists in the provision of seminars and continued training for all doctors in the regional hospitals. They are expected to organise and give lectures to other doctors in their field of study, this keeps them, and other doctors up to date in their work and the happenings in their communities,” she said.

The appointment of the Cuban doctors has reduced the workload on other doctors in the province, Ramathuba added.

“It is encouraging that most hospitals stated that the mortality rate has decreased. In the regional hospitals, the presence of the Cuban doctors has assisted in the departmentalisation process and also in the establishment of specialist clinics.

“We are confident that through their hard working spirit, we can ultimately better the lives of our communities with the implementation of the curative healthcare approach.”