An institutional publication that aimed to highlight the availability of an ambulance in Melena del Sur, Mayabeque, ultimately turned into a platform for residents to voice complaints about fuel shortages, difficulties in accessing the service, and deficiencies in medical care.
The Facebook account «Comunicadora Melena Ampp», associated with the Municipal Assembly of the People's Power, shared several photographs of an ambulance on Saturday and displayed the vehicle's availability as evidence that healthcare remains a priority.
The publication attributed part of the shortcomings of the healthcare system to the "escalation of the blockade imposed by the Government of the United States" and accompanied the message with the hashtags #CubaPorLaSalud and #JuntosPorMayabeque.
However, several residents responded by questioning whether the existence of an ambulance alone guarantees the service that the municipality needs.
"How dishonest you are, with all due respect. It is true that there is an ambulance, but they aren't starting it up because it has no fuel," wrote an internet user.
Another commentator pointed out that "one alone is not enough" and also questioned the condition of the roads that need to be traveled. Another user stated that to obtain the service, "the patient's family member" must provide fuel.
One of the strongest reactions began with an expression of disbelief: "Oh, my holy God, come down from heaven and look at this."
The woman stated that there have been patients in serious conditions waiting at the clinic in the municipality, and she even questioned the mechanical state of the vehicle shown in the photographs.
"Even if you call them, if you don't pay money, they never show up," stated another commentator, while a resident of Jaruco took the opportunity to report that in her municipality, the ambulance service "does not exist."
"We live in a municipality full of lies. And what's hardest is that those who tell them are the same people who mislead," summarized a local resident in another comment.
Complaints arise amid the issues affecting ambulance transportation in Cuba. In June, a Cuban mother reported that she was denied an ambulance due to a lack of fuel, while warned in May that the energy crisis was limiting the operation of ambulances and patients' access to medical services.
Complaints regarding ambulance service are accompanied by reports about the conditions of healthcare centers in Mayabeque. The Leopoldito Martínez Rodríguez General Teaching Hospital, the main facility in the province, was the subject of a complaint from a Cuban about its terrible conditions: bathrooms in the emergency area flooded with urine, a shortage of specialists in anesthesiology, surgery, and orthopedics, an intensive care unit with only five beds, and equipment such as the CT scanner, colonoscope, and laparoscope out of service.
In that context, the photographs of an ambulance that aimed to convey a positive message about public health ended up sparking a very different debate: whether the vehicle is actually available when a patient from Melena del Sur needs it.
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