A Cuban doctor working in the emergency department of Ceuta, Spain, experienced a tense moment during the visit of the Minister of Health, Mónica García, after she left the Government Delegation without speaking to the doctors who were waiting to talk to her.
The scene was captured in two videos posted on Instagram by journalist Verónica Muñoz Martínez, where the Cuban woman is seen running towards the official car of the leader while shouting: "Madam Minister, we doctors want to speak with you! We emergency doctors want to talk to you!"
García's visit took place on Sunday, 16 days after the onset of the migration crisis, when between 49,000 and 60,000 people crossed irregularly from Morocco into Ceuta in a matter of hours, marking the largest mass influx of migrants in Spain's recent history.
The Cuban doctor did not hide her outrage in front of the cameras: "We emergency doctors gathered here to speak with her because we are the ones who have been directly suffering through these situations, and I find it unbelievable that the minister, who is supposed to represent us in healthcare, has the gall to get into a car and not even treat us with respect."
The doctor went further and demanded García's resignation: "What he needs to do is resign."
She also reported that the hospital was prepared before the official's arrival to conceal the true extent of the collapse: "Now they are cleaning because the minister is coming, so she can say that there is no collapse. Everything is clean now."
And he called upon García's medical oath - a professional anesthesiologist - to demand her presence in Ceuta at the start of the crisis: "She has the means; being such a doctor, from day one she should have demonstrated the oath she took and come with us here to put on the gloves as well."
In a second video, the Cuban explained the fear felt by the population and the healthcare workers of contracting some unknown disease in Europe.
"I am Cuban. In my country and throughout the Latin American region, there are many diseases that are specific to these areas and are not known here in Europe. But we are in the African continent," she explained.
He also reported that he attended to a patient who had never received a vaccine in his life and fainted at the sight of the needle. He questioned the stance of those who downplay the risk: “If we are healthcare professionals and we study and feel fear, then what will the population feel?”
García's visit was met with boos and shouts of "resignation" from citizens and healthcare professionals.
According to a report from Libertad Digital, the minister denied that a collapse existed and labeled those who described it as such as "alarmists," although she acknowledged that the system was "stressed" and that the areas of Emergency, Primary Care, and Internal Medicine have faced increased pressure. She estimated that 5,800 migrants were attended to in the 15 days prior to her visit.
The Official College of Doctors of Ceuta warned on August 7 of a "healthcare catastrophe," and medical unions described the emergency services as a "disaster zone." Cases of scabies and impetigo were detected among migrants, and the minister herself confirmed two cases of tuberculosis during her visit, despite the health organization INGESA having previously denied any confirmed cases.
Thousands of Cuban doctors emigrated to Spain are working in emergency services, primary care, and nursing homes in various cities across the country, including Ceuta. Many of them have navigated a lengthy credential recognition process that the Cuban regime has systematically complicated by blocking the issuance of certificates of non-ineligibility required for professional licensing.
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