BARINAS, Venezuela.— Aged 85, Dr. Gerardo de la Llera says he still has a lot to learn. His extraordinary lucidity and friendliness have accompanied the work of the best surgeons in Cuba. With over 60 years experience in medicine and having been awarded various prizes, he is currently in Venezuela where he is contributing his bit to this sister nation.
The Consultant Professor and Distinguished Surgeon of the General Calixto García University of Medical Sciences of Havana has been working for just three months as a faculty advisor to his colleagues, both Cubans and Venezuelans.
Being the oldest collaborator of the island is a great challenge for him and his family. “At first they were resistant that I come out here due to my age and so on, but I feel good,” he says with an enviable energy. “I wake up every day at five o'clock, even on Sundays, and immediately I busy myself.”
He confesses to feeling at home given the excellent care of his colleagues, who admire and respect him. “Here I have learned to appreciate even more those who become your family. Also to understand the value of each person with their experiences, strengths and weaknesses,” the former President of the Cuban Society of Surgery assures.
After all his previous experiences in international missions in at least 23 countries, he says he came to Venezuela, “with conviction, because this is an important task for Cuba.”
The Dr. forms part of the group of 1,240 collaborators that live in Barinas state, located in the southwest of the country. To be in the land of the Bolivarian leader, Hugo Chávez, has special meaning for him. “I didn’t meet Chávez, I didn’t have the opportunity, but I was able to visit the house he was born in, in Sabaneta de Barinas,” he says. He pauses, and explains that in this way he felt a little closer to the sweet-selling kid that became President.
Stories like that of Dr. Gerardo de la Llera inspire us to be better people. His modesty underlines this great man, as he pulls from his pocket a clipping of an edition of Granma and proudly points to an article written about him by journalist José de la Osa some time ago.
