The Ministry of Health had announced its intention to limit the number of Cubans travelling in this program. The reduction of the participation of foreign professionals, however, should be done gradually.

Medical care should not be disturbed especially in the regions where there is gap in permanent Brazilian doctors. The professionals arrive in Brazil through an agreement signed with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the Cuban government. However, plans are to gradually reduce the number to 4,000 Cubans and replace them with Brazilian medical professionals.

In 2016, 10,400 Cubans were working in the program, a 1,000 less from 2015. The agreement signed between the Brazilian and Cuban government and the PAHO provided that professionals recruited on the program would stay in the country for three years.

Although the law allowed the group to spend three more years in Brazil, new agreement signed in September 2016 states that professionals recruited in the first cycle (~4,000) should return to the country for circulation of new set of professionals. Permission to extend the term for these professionals for another three years would be granted in case of established families in Brazil.

After tourism, revenue from professional services, mainly medical services is the main source of foreign exchange for the country. Between 2011 to 2015, the country has generated an annual average revenue of USD11.54 billion.

Cuban health professionals are present in 24 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, 27 in Sub-Saharan Africa, two in Middle East and North Africa and seven from East Asia and the Pacific. The country does not have the accurate number of professionals involved however, estimates by Ministry of Health show that by mid-2015 there were more than 50,000 professionals with half of them being doctors.

Venezuela and Brazil are the most important markets in Latin America and Caribbean islands. The important markets include Qatar, Kuwait, China, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and South Africa. Revenue from Cuba’s largest trading partner, Venezuela for medical services was USD2.8 billion in 2016. The island also offers free services through the Integral Health Program for 27 countries with fewer resources, such as Haiti, Bolivia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras, Ethiopia, Congo, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

In 2016 Cuba had 90,161 doctors, including those working abroad. Along with free education, the Cuba has universal healthcare system with the Cuban state financing the health system. A total of 493,368 people work in the healthcare system including 16,852 dentists, 89,072 nurses and 63,471 technicians. The island also conducts training of doctors from other nations in the Latin American School of Medicine (ELAM).

The events include variety of courses, congresses, symposia and seminars. The SMC intends to increase the visibility of public health sector in Cuba to the world and vice-versa.

Some of the topics planned to be discussed at these events are arthroscopic surgery, skin cancer; thermal tourism and quality of life; podiatry, management of the patient with diabetic foot; regenerative medicine cell therapy; clinical toxicology; rehabilitation of hearing disorders; minimally invasive thoracic surgery; aesthetics and health; cranioencephalic trauma; pesticide poisonings; medical disaster management; professional training for primary health care; family medicine; and challenges and challenges of microbiology and parasitology.

The SMC’s director also mentioned that these events would include tours to Cuban healthcare institutions, promotion of medical programs, trade fairs, etc.

The events intend to promote exchange activities, offer of new products and services such as natural and traditional medicine, and all the technological development achieved so far.

SMC developed a business plan for aesthetic and spa centers (hydrotherapy centers), which includes undergraduate and mid-level course in collaboration with an Argentina company, Great Way Export.

The committee plans to promote hydrotherapy center and reduce invasive surgeries which damage human health. Cuba has conducted R&D on natural products, mainly extracted from the human placenta, related to cosmetology.

SMC mentioned three major events planned for the coming months: First International Congress of Podiatry – Cuba 2017, May; The Second International Congress of Aesthetics, Cosmetology and Aesthetic Medicine, July, and First International Congress of Aesthetic Medicine and Plastic Surgery – Cuba 2017, October.

Committee emphasized that these events will promote health tourism in Cuba, with importance on quality of life therapies, new drugs launch and will deepen the regulation of medical practices.