By David Wald and Juan Reardon, MD, MPH This article originally
appeared in the November 6, 1995 edition of Microtimes It's
hardly unusual when computer technology and medical technology
are joined. In Cuba, computerized information technology is
coming to the rescue of physicians and medical workers. Project
InfoMed is the embodiment of this development. Cuba's long-term
involvement with health care was bolstered in the early `70s
when President Fidel Castro proclaimed his objective that "Cuba
will become a world medical power." To a considerable degree
this has come to pass (with fifty-seven thousand physicians,
Cuba has one doctor for each 192 inhabitants.) Based on a high
level of general and specialized education Cuba has invested
heavily in medical technology--biotechnology, pharmaceuticals,
and medical instrumentation, as examples. Maintaining the
effectiveness of a sophisticated medical system requires the
efficient dissemination of medical data, including the ability
to search and locate specific inf