Che Guevara's daughter tells of her anxiety for the future of Britain's health service

The following article appeared in the Derby Telegraph following Aleida Guevara’s visit to Derby as part of her ‘Remembering Che’ tour.

THE daughter of Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara says any changes made to the NHS must be "for the better" – as it would be "very sad" if the system was lost.

Dr Aleida Guevara made the comments yesterday ahead of a workshop for health professionals at Royal Derby Hospital. She was invited to speak about the role Cuban doctors perform working overseas. There are 20,000 in more than 70 different countries worldwide.

But Dr Guevara – who also visited Derby in 2009, when she described the NHS as "one of the best healthcare systems in the world" – said: "I have been reading about the NHS being in danger or in a dodgy situation because of a tendency to privatise things.

"But it is a system which has been achieved and gained by this country and changes to it have to be for the best, otherwise they make no sense at all. It is one of the best systems in the world and it would be very sad to lose it."

Dr Guevara, who has previously stated that her father influenced her to train as a doctor, also said coming to talk about the work of her country was important.

The 51-year-old said: "I'm getting older now but I still find it is always beautiful to come and speak about the reality of Cuba, which is often silenced by mainstream media.

"It's crucial that people know what we do. The sharing of information is also very important."

Che Guevara's doctor daughter coming back to Derby

Preview of Aleida Guevara’s visit to Derby as part of ‘Remembering Che’ tour as appeared in the Derby Telegraph.

THE daughter of Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara is to visit Derby for the second time in three years.

Dr Aleida Guevara works as a doctor of children's medicine and is taking part in a national workshop for health professionals in the city on September 11.

She will be speaking about the role Cuban doctors perform working overseas. There are 20,000 doctors in more than 70 different countries worldwide.

In 2009, she also took part in an international workshop on children's health and medicine at the then Derby City General Hospital and praised the NHS, describing it as "one of the best healthcare systems in the world".

Imti Choonara, professor in child health at the University of Nottingham and based at Derbyshire Children's Hospital, said: "I am delighted that Aleida Guevara was happy to come to Derby again.

"The university's academic division of child health has strong links with Cuba and has published joint research together looking at the side effects of medicines in children. It also has a bilateral agreement with the University of Havana and joint workshops are frequently held between the two universities."