CUBAN MEDICAL BRIGADE ARRIVES IN THE TCI

The Turks and Caicos Government is pleased to announce the arrival of the Cuban Medical Brigade in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The 20 member team arrived in the TCI on Monday June 15th, 2020 and will provide additional expert medical support to the TCI in response to the Coronavirus and other medical issues.

Commenting on the arrival of the medical brigade, Deputy Governor and Head of the Public Service Her Excellency Anya Williams said;  “Following several weeks of successful negotiations with the Cuban Government, we are pleased to welcome the Medical Brigade to the Turks and Caicos Islands.

We extend our sincere thanks to the Vice-Minister in charge of International Cooperation Affairs in the Cuban Ministry of Public Health, Dr. Marcia Cobas for her kind consideration as well as the delegation at the Cuban Embassy in Jamaica, in particular the Head of Mission Ambassador Inez Flores Fernandez and her assistant Yasnay Perez as well as our colleagues at the British Embassy in Cuba for their direct assistance in progressing this initiative. 

The Turks and Caicos has signed a three month agreement with Cuba for the provision of additional medical support to the TCI with the option to extend for a further term if necessary. The brigade consists of 8 Medical Specialist including a Chief of Brigade, 10 Registered Nurses and an Administrative Assistant. As their areas of specialty span across a number of areas, they will be a great resource to not only our response to the Coronavirus, but also to other medical concerns being experienced by residents in the TCI. We are pleased to embark on this new joint venture with Cuba and will continue to work to improve our medical capacity in the Turks and Caicos through the recruitment of additional staff in the Ministry of Health as necessary.”

Minister of Health the Honourable Edwin Astwood who’s ministry is leading the Coronavirus Response in the Turks and Caicos Islands, said:  “My ministry warmly welcomes the arrival of the Cuban Medical Brigade which will provide much needed additional support in response to the threat of the Coronavirus in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The arrival of the team coincides with the additional work that is being carried out at the Turks and Caicos Islands Hospitals to retrofit a new high dependency wing.

Cuba is renowned for its esteemed medical professionals and we are pleased to have these persons join our team.

The members of the 20 person team will be placed into 14 days quarantine as necessary, during which time they will undertake virtual training with the TCI Hospitals on their systems to ready themselves for full deployment on Monday June 29th, 2020 following testing. My Ministry continues to work to build and to strengthen capacity in these islands and we welcome and fully support this initiative which is being funded through our Coronavirus Budget.”