Community medicine in Cuba

The 25 years of revolution in Cuba have brought about great changes in the health care system. The health status of the population has been transformed from that of a developing country to one approximating the developed countries. The delivery of primary care at the community level has evolved over the past 15 years as a result of critical evaluations of the new implementations. The community polyclinic has been the basis for all health planning since 1975. This model has the health of the community as its main concern and the mechanism for involving the community in healthcare decisions has been established. The history of the community polyclinic and the evolution of the guidelines by which it functions are reviewed. In practice, many problems persist and the strategy for resolution of current conflicts will provide for interesting developments in the near future.