Patriot on Cubans: the issue is humanitarian, not ideological.
"The issue of attracting Cuban doctors has to do with the shortage of professionals in certain areas of Brazil. There is no ideological bias, but rather a humanitarian one," stated Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota this Thursday.
Renata Giraldi
Reporter from Agência Brasil
Brasilia – Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota denied today (22) that the agreement for Cuban doctors to work in underserved areas of Brazil has an “ideological bias”. He said that the motivation is humanitarian to meet the country’s needs. Patriota reiterated that the agreement with Cuban professionals assesses their experience and contact with family health, but avoided mentioning the fact that the Cuban doctors’ salaries are managed by the Cuban government.
The chancellor is participating in a public hearing at the Chamber of Deputies' Foreign Relations Committee, intended to discuss issues related to Brazilian foreign policy. "[The decision to hire Cuban doctors] was made based on considerations of the best possible services; it has no ideological motivation. There are many Cuban doctors willing to do this type of work; perhaps there aren't many Austrian doctors, for example, willing to do this work," he said.
"The issue of attracting Cuban doctors is related to the shortage of professionals in certain areas of Brazil. It's something that is internationally accepted, within health strategies. The agreement with the Pan American Health Organization [PAHO] guarantees that we are proceeding according to best practices," he emphasized. "The idea is to attract doctors who are willing to work. There is no ideological bias, but rather a humanitarian one."
The Ministry of Health announced yesterday (21) that, by the end of the year, 4 Cuban doctors will arrive in Brazil to work in cities that do not attract professionals registered individually in Mais Médicos. On the 26th, 400 professionals will arrive, who will go through the same evaluation process as doctors with foreign diplomas and without diploma revalidation, registered in the first stage of the program.
According to the ministry, Cuban doctors will meet the demand in some of the 701 municipalities that were not selected by any doctor in the first edition of the program. The partnership with the Cubans was announced by the Ministry of Health and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which cannot say how much will be individually allocated to each professional, as the resources will be managed by the Cuban government.
On October 4th, another 2 Cuban doctors are expected to arrive in the country for a new phase. Like those who registered individually, the Cubans coming through the agreement with PAHO will not need to pass the so-called Revalida (Revalidation of Medical Diplomas Issued by Higher Education Institutions) and, therefore, will have provisional registration for three years to work in primary care, with validity restricted to the location to which they are assigned.
Edition: Adjutant Grace