Florida, Feb. 19 – In February 1961, as part of the development of the Rural Medical Service (SMR) in Cuba, the José A. Echeverría Hospital was inaugurated in the community of San Antonio, in the southern area of Florida, a facility where a doctor and four nurses began to serve the population, until health services were expanded with the inclusion of a clinical laboratory and a stomatology office.
The inauguration of this health institution in the community of San Antonio, better known as La Arrocera, took place on February 19 and was part of the plan of actions carried out by the Cuban revolutionary government to solve the health problem of the people, to which Fidel had made reference in his defense plea History Will Absolve Me.
In these 63 years of existence, the workers of the José Antonio Echeverría rural hospital have played a significant role in the fulfillment of all the programs designed by the Cuban health system to preserve the quality of life of the people, from vaccination campaigns to the maternal and infant care program (PAMI), including prevention and health education actions.
In our days and in correspondence with the reorganization of the Cuban health system, this institution works as a reinforced clinic with extended hours and provides services to the inhabitants of this community and the surrounding settlements.