CAY HILL: In light of the decreased amount of COVID-19 admissions, St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC)
will resume elective procedures as per Monday February 8, 2022
Appointments that were cancelled due to COVID-19 and urgent appointments will be given preference
over new, non-urgent appointments and thus may result in a longer waiting list for new appointments.
In addition to this, SMMC urges only persons with appointments, medically indicated companions,
parents of minors and translators to enter the hospital and must follow SMMC’s prevailing safety
protocols.
SMMC also reminds the public that patient visiting hours are still suspended. Persons with friends or family
admitted to SMMC are asked to make use of text messages and phone and video calls where possible to keep
in touch with their loved ones. Persons wishing to receive an update on a patient must contact the patient’s
emergency contact (which is typically a spouse or immediate family member) as SMMC does not provide
patient information to third parties in an effort to protect and uphold patient confidentiality and their patients’
right to privacy.
As it pertains to the rendering of services at the Emergency Room (ER), SMMC has noticed a spike in
persons coming to the ER for non-urgent medical care which should be administered by their General
Practitioner (GP). SMMC reiterates that persons should contact their GP by phone prior, follow their
instructions and inform themselves of what constitutes an emergency. This is in an effort to reduce the
amount of basic and non-urgent medical care given at the ER thus allowing ER staff the time and
resources to handle urgent care. SMMC has produced a video about this topic which can be viewed
here: https://www.youtube.com/watch
SMMC apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause and thanks the public for their cooperation as they
provide quality care close to home while keeping their staff and patients safe.
