Community work, vaccination, and service quality key to tackle COVID-19 in western Cuba

PINAR DEL RÍO, Cuba, Sep 22 (ACN) Since the province of Pinar del Río is today the epicenter of COVID-19 in Cuba, Public Health Minister José Ángel Portal Miranda urged to strengthen community work, step up the vaccination process and ensure service quality to make a change.

He highlighted the need to vaccinate all Cubans over two years of age so that they have at least one dose before the end of September, taking into account the effectiveness of Cuban formulations in provinces where the pandemic has been controlled.

Portal Miranda also stressed the urgency of the work of the community groups and the need for the support of the mass organizations and the young people involved in case-finding and –tracking to reduce the number of cases and control the situation.

He made a call to ensure the availability of health workers at all levels and to improve patient care by reinforcing hospital capacities to admit new patients.

During his visit to the province together with medical and other experts, the Minister warned that the province needs to strengthen control with the help of professionals who have successfully tackled the pandemic in other regions.

He met with healthcare personnel and patients at different medical centers and visited a number of institutions, where he checked upon the availability of oxygen, the diagnostic test system, and the prevention measures in place.

“In view of the high number of COVID-19 cases in the province of Pinar del Río, communication with people is paramount. Therefore, we need to listen to them through the existing channels, including social networks,” he remarked. “The responsibility for making improvements is entirely on our shoulders, as now we can count on 246 professionals from other provinces who are giving a hand here.”

Data provided by the provincial Public Health division have it that, in the last 15 days, Pinar del Río has reported 21,672 cases.