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The Cuban doctor Reynaldo Verona Bonce painted a stark portrait of what it means to be a healthcare professional on the Island, where the healthcare system is marked by profound deterioration.
In a lengthy and heartfelt message posted on Facebook to mark the celebration of Latin American Medicine Day, Verona aimed to highlight the precarious conditions under which specialists in the sector operate.
He recalled that Cuban society used to revere doctors as respected figures and a symbol of family pride.
But now that recognition has eroded in a context where precariousness dominates hospitals, the lack of supplies is constant, and economic hardships impact every aspect of professional and family life.
However, despite the unfavorable labor context, "many continue to be there."
Meanwhile, on the street, others wonder if those who still cling to their white coats are in their right mind.
"The reality is biting today," he wrote, referring to an environment in which the public demands results even as healthcare facilities have been plagued by shortages and deterioration for years.
The doctor criticizes that, although many have forgotten the sacrifices made by healthcare personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic, when they were exposed and infected, medical workers continue to face extreme conditions.
"They are undoubtedly the most self-sacrificing, those who have studied the longest and are the worst paid," he emphasized.
According to the description, the shortage of resources, insufficient salaries, and workload have led some in the profession to question whether it is worth continuing in their positions, despite their calling.
A system that penalizes the doctor
The text by Verona Bonce highlights a pattern: when a treatment fails, a surgery is postponed, or a procedure is delayed due to a lack of resources, the blame automatically falls on the doctor.
In his opinion, society does not acknowledge the structural deficiencies of the system and prefers to hold the professional accountable.
"Even if there are no resources in the hospitals, procedures are delayed, standards are not met, or surgery schedules are not followed, it will always be the doctor's fault," he questioned.
"They will invariably be accused of diagnostic errors, of providing incorrect treatments, of being lazy in their decision-making, of negligence, or of violating protocols," he detailed.
Verona stated that doctors become targets of attacks, distortions, and criticism, and even face job sanctions or criminal proceedings when tragic episodes occur that are often beyond their control.
In her reflection, she laments that in Cuba, almost no one shares the real experiences of the "white coats" or acknowledges the harshness of a job that involves endless hours, sleepless nights, family sacrifices, and profound physical and mental exhaustion.
"No one wants to be in their shoes," she claims.
The calling in the face of abandonment
Despite the harshness of her words, Verona Bonce describes the resilience of the guild with admiration.
He describes doctors as "incombustible," who, even in adverse conditions, continue to attend to patients, driven by the satisfaction of saving lives.
For him, that vocation is so strong that it borders on "masochism," as the professional persists even when the work and social environment seems to turn against him.
It also emphasizes that, after years of study and personal sacrifice, a doctor never lives the same way again: they bear the pain of others, forgo their family life, and accept that their home will be the hospital and their schedules will be dictated by urgency.
In a critical tone, it states that this never-ending commitment becomes a sort of "curse," because even when they are off duty, they do not cease to fulfill their role: neighbors, friends, and acquaintances constantly seek them out for any inquiries or health issues.
A profession without recognition in a country in crisis
The doctor questions why, despite the historical sacrifice of the profession, no one in Cuba builds monuments or publicly recognizes brilliant professionals.
Their contributions fade into oblivion, as if medical work were a silent obligation rather than a fundamental service to society.
His message, symbolically titled "The Curse," concludes with an idea that encapsulates his stance: despite abandonment, scarcity, and weariness, if given the chance to be born again, he would choose medicine once more.
A statement that contrasts with the reality of a devastated healthcare system, where the State demands sacrifice without providing the minimum conditions to practice the profession.
With her publication, Verona Bonce not only congratulated her colleagues on their day, but also revealed a profound grievance: in Cuba, doctors—trained for years and responsible for sustaining a crisis-stricken system—continue to be heroes, even as the country they should serve ignores them, wears them down, and holds them accountable for failures that the government itself refuses to acknowledge.
Thousands of fewer doctors
Cuba lost 30,767 doctors in just three years, decreasing from 106,131 registered physicians in 2021 to 75,364 in 2024, according to figures published this week by the National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI).
The decline, acknowledged by the state institution in its statistical reports, confirms an accelerated contraction of medical personnel amid the deterioration of the healthcare system, characterized by a lack of resources, a shortage of medications, and the exodus of professionals.
The data appears in the section published by ONEI in commemoration of Latin American Medicine Day, where it is also specified that in 2024, the Island had 5,399 fewer doctors than in 2023 (when 80,763 were reported) and 10,199 fewer than in 2014 (when there were 85,563).
This reflects a sustained downward trend following the peak in 2021, a year that ONEI itself identifies as having the highest number of doctors in the country.
The decline is not limited to doctors. Official statistics indicate that the total staff in the healthcare sector—which includes dentists, nurses, technicians, and other licensed professionals—also experienced a significant decrease in 2023, recording 248,512 workers, which is 32,586 fewer than in 2022.
This deterioration of the healthcare workforce coincides with the hospital crisis following the pandemic and the exodus of professionals from the sector, whether due to emigration or abandoning medicine for other trades as a means of survival, in a context where, according to the findings presented in the report, many workers are "exhausted, underpaid, and without hope."
The reduction in personnel is accompanied by a decrease in material capacities.
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