This year’s slogan, “Our neighborhood, Our health,” will run until September 16.

The initiative was first implemented in 2011 by the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO).

The neighborhoods where we live are important to foster a healthy life and create social cohesion, Jose Moya, representative of the PAHO and the World Health Organization (WHO) office in Cuba, stressed.

Wellness Week will make us look for meeting spaces in the neighborhood, and from there, to promote better health for all with the participation of local and health authorities, Moya said at the Unit for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention in Havana.

Susana Suarez, director of the Environmental Health Department at the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP), explained that taking care of community environments is vital, as the environment must be seen as a whole and not in isolation.

The actions can be promoted globally, but they will be more effective when they have a local impact, said Suárez, who assured that it does not matter how small a neighborhood is, as the benefit of its inhabitants will always be greater in terms of health.

jg/iff/jha/joe