To alleviate shortages in the healthcare sector, the government started the recruitment of Cuban nurses last year.
On Friday, Health Minister Dr. Frank Anthony announced that 50 nurses have already arrived this year, with another 50 expected by the end of April.
“We had some nurses that came in from Cuba already, I think we had about 50 that came in and later this month we have another 50 coming in, they are set for around the 24th of this month,” Dr Anthony told reporters at the sidelines of an event on Friday.
These nurses will be deployed to various hospitals across the country.
“When they come in, we put them in different institutions, so they are not all located at one place, we have some in Georgetown Hospital, New Amsterdam and Suddie, and some in Linden.
“Similarly, the same pattern we will follow with this new batch coming in,” Dr Anthony said.
In 2023, a total of 80 Cuban nurses were recruited. The Health Ministry is actively trying to recruit more nurses from other countries to help mitigate staffing shortages locally.
Once they arrive, a three-month crash course is conducted to help Spanish-speaking nurses from Cuba integrate better into the local healthcare system.
The healthcare sector has long grappled with shortages, exacerbated by local nurses seeking employment opportunities abroad.
At its 2023 end-of-year press conference, the Georgetown Public Hospital said the hospital had an overall deficit of about 600 nurses for optimum patient care.
