Peru
"During our summer break, we conducted health assessments in seven communities, called chaskas in Quechua. These are our communities. We go back every summer to bring services to people. We want to create a movement to improve the lives of Peruvians."
Freddy Ponciano Tanzona, 4th Year (on right)
Jhonny Carrillo Prada, 6th Year (center) |  |
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Venezuela
"It's a big sacrifice to be away from home, but I'm clear about my goals, and I know our families appreciate that we're here building a better future for ourselves and ultimately, for our own families and communities."
José Antonio Navas Jiménez, 2nd Year |  |
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Argentina
"Our classes have 20 students from all different countries...You learn so much without realizing it. When we talk about our hometowns, we learn which side of the Cordillera somebody's town is located on, what the climate's like, the conditions in neighboring countries...I am finally grasping the geography of our continent studying here."
Eugenia Amaralle, 1st Year |  |
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Honduras
"In Honduras people see our work through the summer Student Health Teams' collaboration with the Cuban medical teams...when we arrive, you can see their relief and optimism."
Gabriela Nohemí Saravia Coto, 1st Year |  |
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USA
"Our primary focus is to prepare for the US boards. We're taking more initiative and taking some courses earlier in the curriculum, for example, pharmacology, biostatistics, and ethics. We're planning to take the exams earlier than in the past, taking Step 1 by the third year, and Step 2 by the fifth."
Jamar Williams and Kereese Gayle, 2nd Year |  |
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Costa Rica
"Ever since I was very young, I dreamed of becoming a doctor. But studying medicine in my country, being from a rural indigenous community, is practically impossible. To come here went beyond all my expectations. I'm not only studying to become a doctor, but I'm being trained by prestigious Cuban professors, and I'm part of a larger project of Latin America collaboration."
José Luis Vargas Rojas 1st Year, Bribri Community |  |
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Colombia
"Coming to study medicine in Cuba was the best decision I ever made. The type of humanistic, social medicine that I am being taught exactly matches the values that were instilled in me and those that guide my personal goals of becoming a doctor -- to practice medicine to fight social injustice."
Diana Katherine Hernández, 2nd Year |  |