Cuban model Rachel Vallori, former participant in Miss Universe Cuba 2024, reported on her social media the dramatic situation her family is facing on the island, after experiencing a painful ordeal in a hospital where — as she recounted — there are no hip prosthetics available anywhere in the country.
Through a series of stories posted on Instagram, Vallori shared her family's anguish after her 82-year-old great-aunt suffered a fall that resulted in a hip fracture. Upon arriving at the hospital, doctors informed them that they could not operate because there were no prosthetics available in any medical facility in Cuba.
"They told him to go home and, if possible, to get a prosthesis on his own with his relatives, because there are none available anywhere in Cuba," the visibly affected model explained.
Rachel shared that when she tried to obtain a prosthesis from abroad, she learned that the measurements must be precise and customized, complicating the shipping and usage process. However, the most alarming information came from the doctors themselves:
"I was told that there are people who steal prosthetics from the dead, from the cremated, to sell them on revolico.com. Just imagine the level of madness. Doctors have no supplies to operate with, and there are people selling prosthetics taken from corpses," Vallori reported.
The model described the situation as "a nightmare" and asserted that what is happening in the Cuban healthcare system "seems like a programmed genocide."
According to what was reported, her relative did not undergo surgery and is resting while her family tries to support her with the limited resources available.
"Thank God she is stable, but there’s no point in opening her up if there are no prosthetics. She is resting, and we hope she can walk with assistance, even if it’s just with a cane," she explained.
At another time, Vallori also mentioned that Cuba is facing a new wave of dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases, amid a lack of medication and unsanitary conditions.
"I don't understand what's happening. There's total chaos. Mosquitoes, diseases, hospitals without supplies, without medicine... this is beyond words," he expressed.
The testimony of Rachel Vallori has generated significant impact among Cubans both on and off the island, who recognize in her words a brave denunciation of the collapse of the public health system, once promoted by the regime as one of its greatest achievements.
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