A heartbreaking incident has once again highlighted the serious shortcomings of Cuba's public healthcare system. On September 23rd, at the Maternal Hospital in Camagüey, a mother tragically lost her newborn daughter under circumstances that family members and witnesses allege to be a blatant case of medical negligence.
Leydys Marian Guerrero González was admitted on September 22nd due to low amniotic fluid, a condition necessitating immediate monitoring and specialized care. However, according to an account given to independent journalist José Luis Tan Estrada, she was ignored from the outset. Despite being in labor, her vital signs were not monitored, and crucial induction protocols were neglected. Critical hours passed without intervention.
Delayed Response Leads to Tragedy
As her condition worsened, marked by heavy bleeding and alarming signs on the baby's monitor, the hospital staff delayed their response. The cesarean section was performed too late: the baby was already deceased. Guerrero González stated that the only compassion she received that day came from the cleaning staff, while doctors and nurses, who were supposed to save lives, abandoned her.
Aftermath of Suffering
Following the tragic event, Guerrero González faced further indignities. She was moved to a ward filled with newborns and had to climb stairs because the elevator was out of order. "That day, they killed a part of me. Just minutes away from having our much-desired baby, she was heartlessly taken from us," the grieving mother expressed with a mixture of anger and devastation.
Her partner, Leonel Isel Mirabal Romero, calls for an investigation into the medical staff's actions and demands justice. "I urge everyone to share this story so it reaches the right places. Unfortunately for me, and luckily for those responsible, I'm not in that disgusting country, or else I'd be in jail by now," he stated.
Outrage and Calls for Justice
Family and friends took to Facebook to denounce that this tragedy is not an isolated case but part of a series of preventable deaths that the regime tries to conceal to avoid increasing infant mortality statistics. "The doctors were also inhumane. Knowing the baby had no amniotic fluid, they should have acted immediately. They only intervened once the placenta had burst, and by then, the baby had tragically passed away," a family member expressed indignantly.
Others described the care at the Maternal Hospital in Camagüey as "inhumane." A resident from Santa Cruz del Sur recounted, "Two years ago, I was there to give birth to my daughter, and it's the worst in terms of hygiene and care; it's horrible." Another Cuban living in Brazil shared, "It's sad to say, but if you don't have connections, you're left there without any concern. Five years ago, I had my son, and it was a nightmare. The cleaning staff provided better care than the doctors."
Systemic Health Care Failures in Cuba
These comments reflect a shared pain: mothers who lost their children due to lack of care or delayed diagnoses, family members recounting mistreatment and mockery by staff, and voices pointing to corruption as an aggravating factor. "In hospitals, you have to pay to receive care, even childbirth and cesarean sections have a price," lamented a woman from Havana. A resident from Santa Clara noted, "If that baby had been the child of a colonel or a leader, the attention would have been immediate. But they let her die; that's the true face of the supposed 'medical power': a rotten, indifferent, and criminal system that protects no one."
The incident in Camagüey is not isolated. In recent months, numerous public complaints have pointed to the Maternal Hospital in the province and other centers across the country for fatal negligence. In August, young Lianet Barranco lost her baby after failing to receive adequate care despite showing symptoms of preeclampsia. In January, another mother in Granma reported the death of her newborn after days of neglect and contradictory medical advice. In January of the previous year, a family from Havana reported the death of a newborn due to alleged medical negligence at the Enrique Cabrera General Teaching Hospital, known as the National Hospital.
These cases, far from being investigated transparently, remain trapped in institutional silence. While the government prides itself on its healthcare system, more voices are accusing it of being a precarious, dehumanized, and corrupt network, where ordinary patients have no minimum security guarantees.
The plight of this family from Camagüey exposes the reality of a healthcare system that punishes the most vulnerable. A hospital where life hinges more on luck, connections, or money than on professional ethics. A country where tragedies like this are not exceptions but occur with alarming regularity. The family demands justice and, above all, asks that their baby's death does not go unpunished or become just another statistic buried under official propaganda.
Understanding the Healthcare Crisis in Cuba
What led to the tragedy at the Camagüey hospital?
The tragedy was allegedly caused by medical negligence, as hospital staff failed to monitor vital signs and delayed necessary interventions despite the mother's critical condition.
How have families responded to similar incidents in Cuba?
Families have taken to social media to denounce these incidents, highlighting a pattern of preventable deaths and systemic negligence within the Cuban healthcare system.
What are the broader implications of these healthcare failures?
These failures reflect a deteriorating healthcare system in Cuba, characterized by corruption and inadequate care, especially affecting vulnerable populations lacking connections or resources.