|  | Panama 2004 In August, 2004, a survey of cardiac surgery 
    facilities in Panama was undertaken, 2.8 million Panamanians receive cardiac 
    surgery in six centers 
 
     
     
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| Panama 
    includes over 700 offshore islands and is the connecting link (the 
    Isthmus of Panama) between North and South America.   It also separates the Caribbean 
    Sea from the Pacific Ocean via the vital Panama Canal. Control of the canal 
    was returned to Panama on December 31, 1999.   The fertile land of Panama rises 
    into a narrow corridor of mountains. Coastal weather is tropical (hot and 
    humid), with a steamy May - December rainy season. 
 
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