A Cuban woman asked for urgent help through social networks for her cousin who has been hospitalized since Monday inManzanillo, in the provinceGranma, with an open fracture that could not be operated on because there are no supplies to do so.
The young man, 24 years old, fell from a palm and broke his leg. "The bone came out," according to the Cuban, identified on social media as Mara Lidia Vázquez.
"Imagine the pain. We have achieved some things here, butThere are others that cannot be obtained here, such as anesthesia and screws. My cousin is 24 years old, and he is lying on a bed waiting to see what will be resolved", detailed the woman, who indicated that the family is willing to buy the supplies from individuals.
"He has developed a fever, although it has gone down.They are not cleaning his leg, because there was nothing to do with it. Today his mother went out and found some things and then they cleaned him. We need all the help we can get", concluded the Internet user.
Mara Lidia Vázquez included the capture of a WhatsApp message and a recipe that details the amount of supplies necessary to carry out the surgical intervention.
The request includes a 4.5 mm long screw, ten pairs of gloves, three trocars and a 7 or 7.5 endotracheal tube.
Additionally, the prescription includes the necessary anesthesia ("Bupi", presumably "Bupivacaine"), as well as syringes, two blood donations and something that reads as "Lidoc", which could be Lidocaine.
The plea for help has generated consternation among dozens of Cubans who commented on how it was possible that it had reached such a point.
The worst thing is that this is not the first case in which doctors at a Cuban hospital request anesthesia for an operation in recent days.
At the beginning of this month a publication in a buying and selling group in Santa Clara, Villa Clra, pleaded for"spinal anesthesia for emergency surgery" for a child, which fortunately he ended up getting because someone gave it to him.
Until recently the governmentprohibited the use of anesthesia purchased on the informal marketfor operations, but they have been forced to open themselves to this possibility due to their own inefficiency to guarantee the supply of this treatment.
The situation in Cuban hospitals is increasingly critical. In October the Ministry of Public Health in Cuba (MINSAP) admitted thatstudies allowing the use of medical supplies from abroad in the country's health centers, despite the risks that this could imply for patients.
"MINSAP is debating what mechanism to look for to be able to access these resources in a safe way. We hope that before the end of the year this can have a solution," said Dr. Marianela Zapata Romero, director of the Ernesto Guevara Hospital. , in statements to the official mediaTunera Vision.
Amid the shortage of medicines and supplies on the island, Cubans have had to resort to the black market to obtain the operating kits used in hospitals. In August it was news that given the shortage in Cubaan operation kitIt can cost up to $40 on the black market.
In Cuba there are more than 250 medications in short supply and the lack of surgical material and supplies of all kinds is compounded by the drastic decrease in medical personnel due to the migratory crisis or because health professionals ask for leave and emigrate to other work sectors because they cannot. They manage to live on their salary.
The situation is leading the Cuban health system to imminent collapse.
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