CROTONE – “But are you the Cuban pediatrician? Thank you doctor, thank you for helping my daughter.” Thus, by chance, the voice of a Crotone man walking along the seafront breaks in while, sitting at Bar Giorgio, we are interviewing the doctor Ivan Martinez, pediatrician and coordinator of the Cuban doctors who have been working at the Crotone hospital for ten months to ‘rescue’ the Calabrian healthcare that cannot find professionals.
“We came here for the medical emergency in Calabria at the request of your president Occhiuto says Martinez -. If we can help, we help, we don’t look at politics or religion. In Cuba, our leader Fidel Castro had focused on training specialists in various sectors including medicine to help third world countries. When the request for doctors from Italy arrived they thought it was fake news.”
However, it was unfortunately true. Public health problems are similar throughout Italy, but in order to recover from an even more serious situation, Calabria had the courage to ask for support by turning to those who have always provided help with their doctors.
“I have worked in Africa and Central America – says Doctor Martinez -. He pushed us to accept the expectation of professional improvement. It was the first time that asking us for help was not a so-called third world country, but one of the most economically important countries in the world. Naturally we immediately accepted because if it is true that professional medical and scientific training in Cuba is of the highest quality, it is equally true that the economic level of the country is third world”.
Part of the team
Thus, 274 doctors from Cuba arrived in Calabria and, with their skills, overcame all mistrust. In Crotone there are twenty-nine doctors who work in the various departments of the ‘San Giovanni di Dio’, seventeen of them have been there for ten months: “At the beginning it wasn’t easy, but now we feel part of the healthcare team. It’s important to feel good with the team, because they work better and harder. The experience so far is extraordinary with a very important professional and cultural exchange. What struck us is the familiarity and friendship that was immediately created in the departments. We are getting on well in Crotone. The city is pleasant, we have many friends, many people now recognize us. The way of life is very similar to Cuba because Crotone is not a big city, the people all know each other. I can say that now it’s like we’ve been here a long time. The gastronomy is perfect even if your breakfast is too sweet, but pasta and pizza are unsurpassed. On my birthday we had a party with colleagues and I cooked pork according to the traditional Cuban recipe: that too is a cultural exchange.”
Empathy with patients
The pediatrician also highlights the relationship created with the patients: “I won’t deny it, there was mistrust at first, but it disappeared immediately. For us, the patient is a friend, a person who I can then get to know during his life. We are doctors and we care about people’s health, but also about their feelings. We like to create empathy with people, talk to them: I believe that the clinical diagnostic method without using too many technologies is important to make the patient feel welcomed and listened to. A lady from Crotone dedicated a post to me on Facebook to thank me for her affinity, she wrote exactly like that, which as a doctor I had found with her daughter”.
Remoteness
Pediatrician Ivan Martinez gets emotional when asked about his country: “In Cuba I have my family, my wife and four children. I miss them a lot. The distance is felt when you can’t be there for birthdays or parties. We make video calls, I often show my children the department, the colleagues and the nurses I work with here. If the contract, which for now is for one year, continues as it seems to be, we will see if they can come. Meanwhile, my daughter is learning Italian, her dream is to come here. My son did research on the internet and saw that Juventus, who we support, played here in Crotone. Here there is this beautiful sea, there are kind people, there is safety. The dream is coming true.”
