Escambray ENGLISH EDITION
Cuban Doctor Félix Báez, who was infected with Ebola virus in Sierra Leone, is recovering at a fast pace and is likely to be released from the Geneva University Hospital soon, Doctor Jorge Perez revealed.
In an interview with Prensa Latina, the Director of the Institute of Tropical Medicine Pedro Kouri (IPK) said Baez is out of danger, on a very good state of mind and wishing to return to Sierra Leone to continue saving lives once he fully recovers in Cuba.
Baez, from the Henry Reeve contingent, was transferred to Geneva on November 20 as proposed by the World Health Organization.
He had fever and suffered great confusion and was admitted in an intensive care and isolation ward prepared in the said hospital, recalled Perez.
He added that Baez immediately got intravenous treatments, proper hydration and all the care he needed, and 48 hours later his condition started to improve on a daily basis.
Perez said that Baez might be discharged from the hospital soon because he has been testing negative and everything is getting to normal.
The Cuban official highlighted the role played by the WHO and the attention given to the patient in Geneva, with respect, love, affection and professionalism by a team of three doctors and nine nurses with him every day.
He also appreciated the messages sent to Baez by his relatives, comrades in Sierra Leone and all the Cuban people, and extolled the patient’s humane and revolutionary spirit as he has repeatedly expressed his interest to continue fighting Ebola in Africa.
“We have all win this battle. We saved a brother and this is something to be proud of on occasion of the Day of Latin American Medicine tomorrow. ” said Perez.
The Director of IPK sent a message to all health professionals working in other countries worldwide and in Cuba to improve the health and thus the quality of life of the population.
To me it is ironic that Cuba determinately supports equal access health care home and abroad yet the one Cuban doctor who got sick with Ebola has been lavished the best health care the world has to offer. No Saudi prince could buy such lavish care.
So far everyone who received intense rapid response health care at first sign of fever survived even in Africa. In places where rapid response health care is available the only ominous danger is Ebola being masked by another fever for the first two critical days.
I guess Switzerland and others are saying thank you Cuba for all you are doing. But Dr. Baez Sarria was never in any extreme danger. The best way for the world to say thank you Cuba is to work much harder in ending the Cold War relic, US’s unfair Embargo of Cuba. For more detail Google, “Cuban doctor Felix Baez Sarria’s fantastic success story, with an ironic twist”
I agree with you that the best way the world has to say thank you Cuba is pushing harder so that the USA lifts the blockade. Blockade rather than embargo, I must say. But, since I’m a Cuban myself, I don’t agree with what you said about the Ebola-infected doctor. In the first place, the Cuban doctor was sent for treatment in Switzerland at the proposal of WHO. It would be very cruel that this specialist —or any other, from any other country— who voluntarily offered to cure thousands of African people, would die. Neither you nor me were there to determine how serious Felix Báez’s condition was. The difference is that since I’m Cuban, I don’t make comparisons with the cost of health. That is something that is beyond the numbers in Cuba. Besides, for me, the life of a doctor like him is more valuable than that of any Saudi prince.