The Truth about Cuba’s infant mortality rates.

The Truth about Cuba's infant mortality rates.

A Cuban doctor explains the truth behind Cuba's infant mortality rates.

A Cuban obstetrician, who arrived recently from the island, was
interviewed this week by Maria Elvira Salazar on her program "Maria
Elvira Live," broadcast nightly on Mega TeVe in Miami.
In a dramatic testimony, the doctor told Maria Elvira about PAMI
(Medical Attention Program for Infants), a program designed by the
Castro regime to make sure that Cuba's infant mortality rates are kept
low, because it represents a propaganda tool for the government.
When an ultrasound done during the pregnancy reveals that something
could be wrong with the fetus, the woman is forced to have an abortion.
According to the doctor, further examination of the fetuses after these
forced abortions, revealed that the problem was not as serious as it was
diagnosed through the use of the ultrasound, and in some cases there was
actually nothing wrong and the baby could have been born without
complications and live a healthy life.
However, a forced abortion when a possible problem is diagnosed during
the pregnancy eliminates the possibility of any of those babies dying
after birth and impacting the infant mortality rate, which seems to be
the only concern of the Cuban regime.
The doctor also made reference to the lack of treatment that is given to
babies who are born prematurely.
He told of one time when he was on duty and a woman gave birth after
only 26 weeks of pregnancy.
The doctor sent the baby to a neonatology ward at the hospital, but he
died a few hours later.
The next day, he was called to a meeting with the hospital director,
where he was told that he should have known by now that babies who are
born so premature should not be sent to receive further care because, if
they died, it would impact the mortality rate.
He said many premature babies are left to die without receiving any
medical care and are later reported as stillborn, which doesn't impact
the mortality rate.
He said he knew of cases of premature babies who were born alive and
were put in a bag and placed in a closet to be sent later to the morgue
as if they were born dead.
Since the Cuban government keeps a very close track of the performance
of each doctor at Cuba's maternity hospitals, any doctor who has to
report a death of a baby that would impact the infant mortality rate
could get in trouble.
That is why many of them prefer to report a stillborn, than take the
chance with what the system refers to as "non viable" babies.
Unfortunately, Michael Moore and all the other ignorant people who are
always quoting Cuba's infant mortality rates as an example for the U.S.
and other countries to follow, will continue to ignore the truth behind
those rates.

Source: The Real Cuba
Click here to see a video of the Maria Elvira Program (In Spanish)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwMpzLo5OQ0&feature=player_embedded

Medicina Cubana: The Truth about Cuba's infant mortality rates. (13
October 2009)
http://medicinacubana.blogspot.com/2009/10/truth-about-cubas-infant-mortality.html