Sir, – News that Cuba would consider sharing its medical expertise with Ireland is, on the face of it, an embarrassing indictment of our healthcare system, considering our greater affluence (News, April 6th). The idea aims to address problems on both sides of the Irish border following a meeting of “health officials and councillors” with representatives of the Caribbean island.
I wonder if these healthcare officials might similarly recruit a few Cuban counterparts to their ranks to ascertain how they manage their system? Data from recent years shows the healthcare budget of Cuba is $1,032 per capita annually while ours is $5,429. This is remarkable as both countries have life expectancies of about 79 years.
The US spends about twice as much as us – to get essentially identical results. Cuba might do us more of a service by sending administrators rather than doctors. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN O’BRIEN,
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Kinsale,
Co Cork.
