School of People, Environment and Planning, Massey University Manawatu, Private Bag 11 222, Palmerston North, 4442, New Zealand.
Hum Resour Health. 2023 May 3;21(1):36. doi: 10.1186/s12960-023-00822-8.
This paper responds to Asante et al. (in Hum Resour Health, 2014), providing an updated picture of the impacts of Cuban medical training in the Pacific region based on research carried out in 2019-2021, which focused on the experiences of Pacific Island doctors trained in Cuba and their integration into practice in their home countries.
The research focussed on two case studies-Solomon Islands and Kiribati. Study methods for this research included multi-sited ethnographic methods and semi-structured interviews as well as qualitative analysis of policy documents, reports, and media sources.
The Cuban health assistance programme has had a significant impact on the medical workforce in the Pacific region increasing the number of doctors employed by Pacific Ministries of Health between 2012 and 2019. Qualitatively, there have been some notable improvements in the medical workforce and health delivery over this period. However, the integration of the Cuban-trained doctors into practise has been challenging, with criticisms of their clinical, procedural and communication skills, and the need for the rapid development of bridging and internship training programmes (ITPs) which were inadequately planned for at the outset of the programme.
The Cuban programme in the Pacific is an important model of development assistance for health in the region. While Cuba's offer of scholarships was the trigger for a range of positive outcomes, the success of the programme has relied on input from a range of actors including support from other governments and institutions, and much hard work by the graduates themselves, often in the face of considerable criticism. Key impacts of the programme to date include the raw increase in the number of doctors and the development of the ITPs and career pathways for the graduates, although this has also led to the reorientation of Cuban graduates from preventative to curative health. There is considerable potential for these graduates to contribute to improved health outcomes across the region, particularly if their primary and preventative health care skills are utilised.
本文回应了 Asante 等人（发表于《人力资源健康》2014 年）的研究，根据 2019-2021 年的研究提供了古巴医学培训在太平洋地区影响的最新情况，该研究重点关注在古巴接受培训的太平洋岛国医生的经验及其在本国实践中的融入情况。
该研究集中在两个案例研究上，即所罗门群岛和基里巴斯。这项研究的方法包括多点民族志方法和半结构化访谈，以及对政策文件、报告和媒体来源的定性分析。
古巴卫生援助计划对太平洋地区的医疗劳动力产生了重大影响，在 2012 年至 2019 年期间，太平洋国家卫生部雇用的医生人数有所增加。在这段时间内，医疗劳动力和医疗服务在质量上有了一些显著的改善。然而，古巴培训医生的融入实践具有挑战性，他们的临床、程序和沟通技能受到批评，并且需要快速发展桥梁和实习培训计划（ITP），而这些计划在项目开始时就没有得到充分规划。
古巴在太平洋地区的项目是该地区卫生发展援助的一个重要模式。虽然古巴提供奖学金是一系列积极成果的触发因素，但该计划的成功依赖于一系列行为者的投入，包括其他政府和机构的支持，以及毕业生自身的辛勤工作，他们常常面临相当大的批评。迄今为止，该计划的主要影响包括医生人数的增加以及 ITP 和毕业生职业道路的发展，尽管这也导致古巴毕业生的职业方向从预防转向治疗。这些毕业生有很大的潜力为改善整个地区的健康结果做出贡献，特别是如果他们的初级和预防保健技能得到利用的话。
