Cuban Health Care: The Ongoing Revolution

How the Cuban health care system became the blueprint for accessible medical care around the world

Quiet as it's kept inside the United States, the Cuban revolution has achieved some phenomenal goals, reclaiming Cuba's agriculture, advancing its literacy rate to nearly 100 percent - and remaking its medical system. Cuba has transformed its health care to the extent that this "third-world" country has been able to maintain a first-world medical system, whose health indicators surpass those of the United States at a fraction of the cost. Don Fitz combines his deep knowledge of Cuban history with his decades of on-the-ground experience in Cuba to bring us the story of how Cuba's health care system evolved and how Cuba is tackling the daunting challenges to its revolution in this century.

Fitz weaves together complex themes in Cuban history, moving the reader from one fascinating story to another. He describes how Cuba was able to create a unified system of clinics, and evolved the family doctor-nurse teams that became a model for poor countries throughout the world. How, in the 1980s and '90s, Cuba survived the encroachment of AIDS and increasing suffering that came with the collapse of the Soviet Union, and then went on to establish the Latin American School of Medicine, which still brings thousands of international students to the island. Deeply researched, recounted with compassion, Cuban Health Care tells a story you won't find anywhere else, of how, in terms of caring for everyday people, Cuba's revolution continues.

Author: Don Fitz
Publisher: Monthly Review Press
Published: 06/22/2020
Pages: 296
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.80lbs
Size: 8.20h x 5.40w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9781583678602


Review Citation(s):
Choice 04/01/2021

About the Author
Fitz, Don: - Don Fitz is a member of the editorial board of Green Social Thought and newsletter editor for the Green Party of St. Louis. He contributes frequently to Monthly Review magazine.