Minister of Public Health Social Development & Labor, Cornelius De Weever during the St. Maarten Medical Center organized information session on Dialysis and Kidney Transplant at the University of St. Maarten stated that everyone, including employers, need to be considerate and accommodating, and look out and help each other whenever possible.
"Currently when our clients, friends and family members need a transplant they have to look and turn to their family members to donate a kidney to them. The match needs to be a good one, compatible, but most importantly the willingness of the family member to share one of their kidneys with you is more important. The counseling and preparation needed for this to happen cannot be underestimated," said Minister De Weever.
Minister De Weever congratulated the SMMC staff for the initiative they took to organize such a session, and thanked Dr. Jolles for the many years of care to clients and family members. "We are grateful for the improvements at SMMC especially at the dialysis center, and I urge you to continue improving," said Minister De Weever.
"We must take things one step at a time and it took some time to get a nephrologist to see our clients, and based on the feedback I have received it is a welcomed addition to the care at SMMC," said Minister De Weever.
In addition, the minister stated that for those who think about the cost, it is important to note that when you focus on cost, quality goes down, and when you focus on quality cost goes down. "That is why we have to continue focusing on quality of care which will lead to a better quality of life and we all deserve this."