Belkis Bauzá was caught posing as medical staff, while mothers face extreme shortages on the island.
14ymedio, Miguel García, Holguín, August 10, 2025 — In a country where medical resources are scarce and health centers deal with shortages on a daily basis, the case of a woman who pretended to be a nurse at the Lenin Hospital in Holguín has set off alarms. According to the complaint published on the official profile Cazador Cazado, Belkis Bauzá was surprised while pretending to perform medical work without having a diploma, course or official accreditation.
The report says that, in addition to the deception, the fake professional set up her own “business” within the delivery area, combining the use of hospital beds with an improvised sale of health supplies. “It’s more than a hustle; she is playing with peoples’ health,” warns the post on Facebook, which called for sanctions “without anesthesia” for those who “profit from the needs of others.”
“She had been pretending for a while, but everything exploded when she offered a bed, paid of course, to the companion of a patient, who reported her thinking that she was a real nurse,” according to a source in the hospital. ” This case got on the internet and caused a scandal because someone reported it to the management, but that happens every day here: workers have to do their deals to survive.”
Holguín’s Vladimir Ilyich Lenin University General Hospital does not escape the problems of the network of gynecology and obstetrics centers throughout the Island.
With its dark corridors, dirty bathrooms and fewer staff to care for pregnant women due to the occupational and migratory exodus, the Vladimir Ilyich Lenin General University Hospital in Holguín is no exception to the problems of the network of gynecology and obstetrics centers throughout the country. “There are people who try to do their job with dignity, but that is increasingly difficult,” acknowledges the same source.
“We lack security staff, stretcher-bearers, anesthetists and even pantry staff,” she says. ” So it is a miracle that we continue to bring children into the world here because it is increasingly difficult.”
The episode with Bauzá comes at a time when the crisis of Cuban mothers is becoming increasingly visible. At the Provincial Gynecological Teaching Hospital José Ramón López Tabranes, in Matanzas, pregnant women must also overcome the lack of basic supplies, as this newspaper recently reported. There, Yamila, 22 years old, had prepared her bag for giving birth a few days ago, not only with the baby’s clothes but also with syringes, sutures, gloves, a fan, cutlery and even a washbasin to bathe.
The deterioration of the facilities is evident: cockroaches on the walls, nurses smoking by the windows and consultations that prioritize those who arrive with “gifts.”
The deterioration of the facilities is evident: cockroaches on the walls, nurses smoking by the windows and consultations that prioritize those who arrive with “gifts” for staff. Even pregnant women at risk, such as Leticia -diabetic and bleeding- report waiting hours for lack of priority attention.
The province of Matanzas has gone from registering almost 8,000 births per year to just over 4,000 in 2024, with a birth rate of 6.6 per 1,000 women, one of the worst in the country. The emigration of young women, homelessness, high prices and low wages complete the picture of a crisis affecting both demography and public health.
In this context, cases such as that of Belkis Bauzá reflect not only the vulnerability of the health system but also the loss of confidence in a population that, between fear and resignation, knows that giving birth in Cuba is today an obstacle course. On the list of concerns, the presence of fake personnel is just another risk that adds to a picture already marked by scarcity and deterioration.
Translated by Regina Anavy
____________
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
