A desperate call for help has been made by a Cuban woman seeking urgent medical attention for her brother, who suffers from schizophrenia, in Camagüey. The family, grappling with the young man's frequent episodes, is left without essential medications. "Look at the condition my brother is in, and my grandmother is 84 years old. Despite his state, he is a trained musician and a religious person. In this town (Guáimaro), there’s no ambulance to help me restrain him so we can administer an injection to bring him back to himself," she tearfully shared in a video posted to a Guáimaro Facebook group. In the video, the young man was seen blocking her from entering their home and throwing a bicycle out into the street.
"We’re waiting for the SIUM to appear; the police say they can't intervene," she added. Just three days earlier, the family reported that Sandy Perez Suares, the affected individual, had gone missing. Thousands of psychiatric patients in Cuba endure the severe shortage of medications, a crisis that has tragically claimed the lives of several individuals. Only a few weeks ago, the renowned Cuban visual artist Yulier Rodríguez (Yulier P) raised his voice on social media to highlight the dire lack of psychiatric medications, particularly for those experiencing acute or nervous crises.
In his heartfelt Facebook message, the artist voiced his concern over the inaccessibility of Olanzapine, a crucial drug for many struggling with mental health disorders. He pointed out that the challenging living conditions in the country, marked by exorbitant food and basic goods prices, transportation woes, and the prevalence of drug and alcohol use, have exacerbated these mental health issues.
Yulier P, who has personal experiences with family members battling mental disorders and has faced nervous breakdowns himself, stressed the critical importance of these medications in healing and improving the lives of those suffering from schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. To make matters worse, the island also faces a shortage of ambulances to handle such emergencies efficiently.