Abstract

TOLEDO CURBELO, Gabriel José. José Martí's preventive thinking. Rev Cubana Hig Epidemiol [online]. 2005, vol.43, n.1. ISSN 0253-1751.

A search of José Julián Martí Pérez's thinking related to health was made in his Obras Completas by using methods of historical research. Enough textual quotations were found allowing to consider him as one of the greatest health thinkers of his time, since he explored all the fields of hygiene, epidemiology and, in general sense, of public health, which comprises among its component parts all the health sciences. His contribution became brighter when he analyzed what real medicine was, which he called Hygiene. By analyzing all the literary production of Martí concerning the health field, it is proved the deepness with which he studied the problems of poverty and misery of the Latin American countries and how, in a brilliant way, he related them to disease and death. It is also showed that Martí was a precursor in Latin America on stressing the responsibility of the State as regards the preoccupation and solution of the health-disease problems of its peoples.We conclude this search with one of his verses, where showing his fervent patriotism, he compared the Spanish doctors he met with the Cuban doctors.