In response to the Central American governments' request for help, Cuba did not hesitate to express its willingness to send medical and auxiliary health personnel.

By: María Josefina Arce.

New friends, grateful humble people, recognition from the authorities and above all numerous lives saved is the great satisfaction of a group of 62 doctors who returned to Cuba after four years of solidarity aid in Guatemala.

Next November will be the 25th anniversary of the beginning of the presence of Cuban health collaborators on Guatemalan soil to assist the victims of the devastating passage of hurricanes George and Mitch through Central America in 1998.

In response to the Central American governments' request for help, Cuba did not hesitate to express its willingness to send medical and auxiliary health personnel for as long as necessary.

This is one more page in the long history of health collaboration between the largest of the Antilles and other nations, which in Guatemala has had important moments of great significance for the poorest sectors.

The inauguration in 2006 of the first Operation Miracle ophthalmology center, which was later joined by three other institutions, stands out.

Low-income Guatemalans benefited from the opening of these facilities. Thousands recovered their vision thanks to the care provided by Cuban specialists.

Over the years, the collaborators of the archipelago have not only brought health to the most remote places of the Guatemalan geography, but have also been present in the face of other natural disasters.

This was the case with Hurricane Stan in 2005, which left numerous victims and great material damage, and the eruption of the Fuego volcano in 2018.The work of Cuban health professionals during the COVID 19 pandemic was arduous. Together with their Guatemalan colleagues, they worked tirelessly in hospitals to deal with the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The Minister of Public Health and Social Assistance of Guatemala, Francisco Coma, has highlighted Cuba's support to the medical brigades, who work in areas of difficult access, improving the provision of essential services, which translates into a better lifestyle.The doctors of the Greater Antilles are in those places where extreme poverty takes away lives. They are a hope for many people, who are grateful for their solidarity, humanism and professionalism. A proof of the falsehood of the campaign of the enemies of the revolution against Cuban health collaboration.