Family medicine in Cuba: community-oriented primary care and complementary and alternative medicine

Affiliations

University of Wisconsin Medical School, St. Luke’s Family Practice Residency

Abstract

Family physicians in Cuba and the United States operate within very different health systems. Cuba's health system is notable for achieving developed country health outcomes despite a developing country economy. The authors of this study traveled to Cuba and reviewed the literature to investigate which practices of Cuban family physicians might be applicable for US family physicians wishing to learn from the Cuban experience. We found that community-oriented primary care (COPC) and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) are well developed within the Cuban medical system. Because COPC and CAM are already recommended by US family medicine professional bodies, US family physicians may want to learn from the Cuban experience and perhaps incorporate elements into their individual practices.

Document Type

Article

PubMed ID

15994475

Link to Full Text

 

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