A medical worker in protective gear speaks to a woman wearing a mask at the door of the ward designated for respiratory emergencies, at Dr. Manuel Gea González General Hospital, one of many treating patients with symptoms of the new coronavirus in Mexico City, Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Another group of Cuban doctors has arrived in Mexico to help with the coronavirus outbreak, the second such delegation the country has welcomed.
Assistant Health Secretary Hugo López-Gatell said Friday that the Cuban doctors who arrived a day earlier were invited by Mexico City authorities to bolster health care amid rising COVID-19 case numbers. He said the federal government approved of the city’s decision.
The group reportedly included about 140 Cuban doctors. The first group arrived in early April. At that time, federal authorities said the Cubans would not be involved in direct patient care, and López-Gatell said Friday that the new group would act as advisers. He said some of the Cuban doctors were experts in public health and intensive care.
López-Gatell said Mexico has a shortfall of about 200,000 health care professionals, including doctors, nurses and other positions. In addition, about 2,000 health care workers have been infected with the coronavirus in Mexico since the pandemic began.
