Natural remedies cannot be written off
The doctors during their presentations at the Linden Hospital Complex last Friday
The doctors during their presentations at the Linden Hospital Complex last Friday

— Cuban doctors find that they are better than prescribed medicine in some cases

SCIENTIFIC research done by Cuban doctors attached to the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC) has concluded that in some cases natural/traditional remedies are better than prescribed medicine.
According to consultant surgeon, Dr. Elena F. Aranguren Herrera, doctors can become innovative and gravitate towards natural home remedies as they have proven to be not only effective, but cheap.

Herrea was among 10 other Cuban doctors who on Friday presented their annual scientific research on a medical issue as they are mandated to do.
Each doctor presented their findings on scientific research done on the varying fields ranging from paediatrics, gynaecology, orthopaedics, radiology, surgery and anthropology.
According to LHC Public Relations Officer, Toshanna Allicock, the aim of the research is to develop or update on a particular way of treatment the doctors would have used on unique cases or a particular pattern of cases; as well as how these cases can be prevented.
“If these doctors notice a pattern with the amount of patients coming in with that condition, they do a research and if they have to deal with a unique case, they do research on that as well. So what happens is if they come up with solutions to these cases in depth, they are now able to set a precedence for following cases to come, so it is definitely beneficial to the hospital in that regard,” Allicock posited.
Orthopaedic Dr. Jesus Mesa said every Friday, all the doctors would hold a ‘teaching meeting’, and any important case is discussed in depth which is a way of preparing for the presentations. Mesa’s presentation dealt with the frequencies of fractures in children and how this can be treated.

Zooming-in on Dr. Herrera presentation which was the only one done in English, she treated a patient, who was admitted with second degree burns at the LHC, with honey for 28 days and the patient was discharged completely healed.
She alluded to the use of traditional medicines such as honey dating back to 2400 BC and how it had been proven effective since then.
Honey, she explained, has been used as a salve to heal burns and to prevent infections for thousands of years, according to the Mayo Clinic and the results show that it reduces the healing time.

“It seals the wound from outside contaminants, it’s a mild acid; most bacteria can’t grow well in that, it has low water content. Bacteria doesn’t like that either, it dries them up and the high sugar content dehydrates bacteria.” The honey was applied to the patient’s body every other day with changed dressing.

“There has been a lack of medicines and drugs not only in this hospital but all over, so if we treat those patients and show the improvement and the healing, it should be good for the hospital…. I have been doing it for 20 years and that is how I know that they are effective and inexpensive and to avoid the patient to get reaction of the medicine,” Dr. Herrera said.
Some of the other presentations done on Friday were ultrasound diagnostic, use and relationship with professional skill, vaginal sepsis and pregnancy, manifestations in the scorpion bite, immunological hepatitis, clinical- epidemiological characteristics and eye conditions in the emergency room.
The better presentations and research were chosen by the judging panel and will be featured in the scientific research symposium that will be held in Georgetown.
Last year, four doctors represented the LHC at the symposium. The research papers are then compiled in a scientific journal.

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