Public Entity Saba ZJCN, SMMC, SEHCF, and Saba Cares join forces during the seminar “Medical Referrals” on St. Eustatius

To address the challenges with medical referrals for Saba and Sint Eustatius residents and the general sentiment about care on the island, ZJCN organized a seminar with colleagues from Sint Maarten Medical Center (SMMC), Sint Eustatius Health Care Foundation (SEHCF), and Saba Cares. The two-day workshop aimed to improve the process of medical referrals on the Windward Islands.
Recently, much attention has been paid to the provision of care on the Windward Islands. Organizing healthcare on the Windwards Islands is a challenge because secondary care may not be provided on the island, and patients are therefore dependent on medical referrals. Medical referrals for insured parties on Saba and Sint Eustatius pose logistical, organizational, and communication challenges, which makes it a strain on the patient. The seminar participants addressed these challenges, intending to improve the process of medical referrals. Before the 2-day seminar, information was collected from the various medical institutions, OLE and OLS administrators, and insured persons.
Some of the essential conclusions from this seminar are:
• There must be better communication with the insured person from ZJCN and SMMC, SEHCF, and Saba Cares. There will be more cooperation in this area between the chain members to keep the public well informed.
• The ZJCN offices should be more visible and accessible on the islands.
• The care offered at SMMC must be straightforward, and the referral to SMMC must be made without difficulty. ZJCN and the care providers on Saba and Sint Eustatius have agreed to start a pilot to make referrals to SMMC easier and more transparent.
• The protocol for medical evacuations must be unambiguous for all involved and reinforced.
• Information about access times for treatment and/or consultation with various specialists must be available to the insured persons. The access time for a cardiologist, for example, is different from the access time at the urologist, and patients must be informed about this. This information is currently not available.
During the week, ZJCN also organized meetings on both islands where citizens could talk to the complaints officer. Soon ZJCN will create more opportunities for citizens to make their complaints known in an accessible manner. It was also agreed upon that the complaints officers of SEHCF, Saba Cares, SMMC, and ZJCN will work more closely together to handle complaints. During the week, ZJCN also organized meetings on both islands where citizens could talk to the complaints officer. Several insured persons were invited to share their experiences with the seminar participants. These experiences helped provide the participants with a better understanding of the changes needed to improve the quality of medical referrals for Saba and Sint Eustatius residents.