Reprinted Courtesy of Engage Cuba
MSUCOM has worked with Project C.U.R.E., an international relief organization that distributes donated medical supplies to more than 130 countries, since 2011 to send supplies and equipment to Peru and Mexico. Now the two entities, along with a national coalition called Engage Cuba, have delivered a container of supplies to Cuba.
A 40-foot cargo container filled with donated medical supplies was shipped to Callista Garcia Hospital in Havana. The container, valued at $560,988, was filled with critical care and intensive care supplies and surgical specialty items, as well as general hospital consumable and durable goods.
A ceremony to mark the delivery took place on May 11 with representatives from Project C.U.R.E, MSUCOM, Engage Cuba, as well as Cuban governmental leaders, including Cuba’s Minister of Public Health, Roberto Morales Ojeda.
"Project C.U.R.E. has been a friend of the Cuban people for the past 20 years," said Douglas Jackson, Project C.U.R.E. president and CEO. "We are excited to keep the friendship throughout this transition with our comrades. This gift is in celebration of working together! Project C.U.R.E has built a wonderful friendship with Cuba, and we are happy to continue our friendship by delivering this cargo container of life-saving medical supplies today.”
The MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine’s support for Project C.U.R.E.’s work has resulted in the provision of medical supplies and equipment for countries around the world, including Peru and Mexico.
“As the first American university since the Revolution to give our medical students the opportunity to train in Cuban clinical settings, we have witnessed the incredible talents and compassion that Cuban physicians have for their patients, said William Cunningham, MSUCOM assistant dean and director of the MSU Institute of Global Health. “We have also been able to study the tremendous strides that the Cuban government has made in maternal and infant mortality, immunizations and longevity for its people. We welcome the opportunity to continue this partnership and learn from our Cuban friends.”