Exploring Cuba’s Medical Breakthroughs: A Study of Health Care and International Relations

By Julie M. Feinsilver, David E. Apter

Cuba, a small, developing country, has achieved remarkable medical breakthroughs despite facing numerous challenges, including scarce resources and a long-standing U.S. embargo. The island nation has managed to provide universal access to health care, comprehensive health education, and advanced technology, even amid desperate economic conditions.

Moreover, Cuba has emerged as a “world medical power” by sending disaster relief, donations of medical supplies and technology, and cadres of volunteer doctors throughout the world. In her significant and timely study, Julie Feinsilver delves into the Cuban medical phenomenon, examining how a governmental obsession with health has reaped medical and political benefits at home and abroad.

As a result of Cuba’s forward strides in health care, infant mortality rates are low even by First World standards. Cuba has successfully dealt with the AIDS epidemic in a manner that has aroused controversy and that some claim has infringed on individual liberties—issues that Feinsilver succinctly evaluates.

Feinsilver’s research and travel in Cuba over many years give her a unique perspective on the challenges Cuba faces in this time of unprecedented economic and political uncertainty. Her book is a must-read for everyone concerned with health policy, international relations, and Third World societies.

Book Details:

Publisher: University of California Press; First Edition (October 28, 1993)

Language: English

Pages: 328

ISBN-10: 0520082982

ISBN-13: 978-0520082984