Panels, lectures, symposiums, book launches and scientific meetings were propitious spaces to reaffirm the improvement of health as a determinant of social development in the IV International Convention Cuba-Health-2022, which concluded at the Palace of the Conventions of La Havana this October 21.
Participating in the closing ceremony of the event -which began on October 17- was Jorge Luis Broche Lorenzo, member of the Secretariat and head of the Department of Attention to the Social Sector of the Central Committee of the Party; the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic Inés María Chapman Waugh; the Minister of Public Health José Ángel Portal Miranda; ministers and deputy ministers from other nations; directors of the MINSAP; representatives of international organizations and organizations and several of the delegates who participated in the event.
During the report, Dr. Ileana Morales Suárez, director of Science and Innovation of the MINSAP, made reference to the fairs that were part of Cuba-Health 2022: the Health for All Trade Fair, the Third Fair of Scientific Editorials and the First Fair of Medical Tourism and Wellness.
“Cuba-Salud 2022 had more than 3,000 face-to-face participants. Of them, 947 delegates from all Cuban provinces and 452 participants from 64 countries on all continents, who were joined by exhibitors, guests and members of the logistics and scientific insurance commissions”, reported Morales Suárez.
The doctor acknowledged the participation in the event of the leadership of PAHO and the United Nations Population Fund, as well as 44 high-level delegations, which represented ministries and secretariats of health from countries around the world.
The scientific program of Cuba-Health 2022 exceeded 350 face-to-face activities, where various topics were addressed, such as the safety and quality of medical care, confronting emerging and reemerging diseases, the impact of climate change on health, the organization and operation of health systems to make them more efficient and sustainable, antimicrobial resistance, new forms of international cooperation in health, research and innovation, among other issues.
The foregoing is of special importance, if one takes into account that “Cuba-Salud 2022 was celebrated in a complex international context, where the commitment of governments to achieve the goal of health for all faces the multiple challenges posed by epidemics, conflicts and disasters of natural or technological origin”, commented Morales Suárez.
Regarding the contributions of the event, Dr. Christopher Tufton, Minister of Health and Welfare of Jamaica, pointed out that “it has shown us that it is vital to share knowledge, to increase the capacities of the world’s health systems.” In addition, he referred that these conferences have been an example of what can be done in the face of global needs.
For his part, Dr. Armindo Daniel Tiago, Minister of Health of Mozambique, recognized Cuba’s collaboration with countries around the world and congratulated the government of the largest of the Antilles for the level of organization of the event and its scientific quality. “Cuba-Salud 2022 exceeded our expectations and will contribute to strengthening our health systems and our friendly relations,” he said.
Closure of Cuba-Health 2022. Photo: Cubadebate.
The central words of the closing were given by Tania Margarita Cruz Hernández, first deputy minister of the MINSAP, who appreciated the debates held at the event on economic, legal and regulatory issues related to health; as well as the exchanges that positioned the quality of life as a fundamental determinant of social development.
“In Cuba, despite the intensification of the blockade, the media war and the impact of the epidemiological situation caused by covid-19, the activities of the health system have not stopped and the altruistic, human and ethical behavior that characterizes Cuba has prevailed. to our professionals, for which we have maintained a service based on justice, equity and professionalism, whose premise is the development of primary health care”, reflected the deputy minister and explained that the development of promotion, prevention, medical care and rehabilitation.
He also made reference to the medical missions in other countries, which continue to be a fundamental pillar of the Cuban health system, in correspondence with the principles of solidarity of the largest of the Antilles.
Cruz Hernández thanked the participation in Cuba-Health 2022 of prestigious national and international organizations that, together with the Ministry of Public Health, made the development of the convention possible; She expressed her gratitude to the foreign delegations and the attending Cuban professionals and opened the call for the fifth International Convention and the Health Exhibition Fair, which should be held in 2025.
“Let’s continue working so that health is not a privilege, but a right for all. Count on Cuba to achieve this better world that Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz always aspired to,” she concluded.
(By: Lisandra Fariñas Acosta, Yilena Héctor Rodríguez)