The owner of a private restaurant in Buenaventura, Holguín, decided to provide free meals for the doctors on duty during the weekends at the municipal hospital Nicodemus Regalado León.
The story was published this Monday by Radio Juvenil, a broadcaster from the municipality of Calixto García, who identified the entrepreneur as Alfonso López Ávila, owner of the restaurant-paladar El Ranchón.
Dr. Ariel Leyva Pérez explained that he has received free meals during his shifts and expressed gratitude for both the quality of the food and the treatment he has received.
"It has provided us with quality food accompanied by respectful treatment, camaraderie, and above all, filled with humanism," affirmed the doctor to the local media.
Dr. Carmen Calixto Calixto, mother of two and a resident of the Las Mantecas neighborhood, about seven kilometers from Buenaventura, also expressed gratitude for the initiative, especially given the challenges of working far from her home and having to spend long hours at the medical center.
"Imagine, for someone like me who works far from home, having the opportunity to have dinner here without having to pay a single cent is something for which I am greatly thankful," he expressed.
Alfonso López Ávila explained that he decided to help as a way to show gratitude towards healthcare professionals and that he provides food during the afternoons and nights of Saturdays and Sundays.
«And what can I do? Well, I help them as much as I can with the afternoon-evening meals on Saturdays and Sundays. It's my humble contribution, and I do it with satisfaction,” declared the owner of El Ranchón.
He also stated that he feels "grateful for Cuban medicine, especially considering how many patients come to medical centers, receive care, and save their lives without having to spend a cent."
Radio Juvenil also noted that the owner of El Ranchón had previously contributed to the feeding of a Aqueduct brigade that worked on the repair of the sewage system in the Centro Escolar neighborhood, in Buenaventura.
"Gestures like the one I just presented have also taken place in neighborhoods and communities of the municipality, with a focus on vulnerable families, highlighting once again the compassionate, selfless, humane, and altruistic nature of the Cuban people," emphasized the broadcaster.
López Ávila's gesture adds to other initiatives by private workers who have used their own resources to assist in the face of the shortages affecting the Cuban population.
In May, an entrepreneur from Sancti Spíritus donated 20 meals to the humanitarian project Brothers of the Street, which provides assistance to individuals in vulnerable situations.
Furthermore, the private initiative in Holguín arrives at a particularly challenging time for workers in the Cuban healthcare system, affected by shortages of medications and supplies, energy issues, and the difficulties faced by numerous basic services.
Feeding during shifts has also been a subject of complaints for years.
In 2022, a doctor from the Mártires de Mayarí Hospital, also in Holguín, showed the inadequate dinner provided to the on-duty staff, consisting of a small portion of rice, boiled sweet potato, and a liquid that he could not even identify with certainty. "What is lacking here is respect for us," the physician reported at that time.
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