Location Map FAQ
Are you satisfied with the care you are receiving or have received? That’s great! We are always happy to hear when patients leave our hospital satisfied. This way we know that we are heading in the right direction to provide optimal, patient-centered care. If you would like to let us know what we’re doing right, you can submit your compliments using on online compliment form.
We aim to always provide high-quality, exceptional care. However, sometimes a visit to our hospital may not go as expected or desired. In that case, please let us know. By sharing your experiences with us, you offer us opportunities to improve our care and services so that we can better serve you and others in the future. Help us improve healthcare together!
St. Maarten Medical Center Attn. Complaint Officer Welgelegen Road 30, Cay Hill St. Maarten
Any patient or visitor of SMMC can submit a complaint. Legal representatives and direct relatives of patients can also submit a complaint. Other parties can only file a complaint with the patient’s permission. We do not handle anonymous complaints.
You can submit a comment or complaint about any matter at SMMC that you are dissatisfied with. This may concern, for example, medical treatment, patient care, information provision or the organization of care.
If you would like to speak to the Complaint Officer, this is possible – even if you don't want to take any action. You can share your experience with the Complaint Officer who will explore what can be done about the complaint. The Complaint Officer informs, advises and if desired, mediates between you and the responsible staff member.
The Complaint Officer is an employee of the hospital but has an independent, neutral and impartial position. All complaints submitted to the Complaint Officer are registered. The Complaint Officer reports monthly to the Board of Directors and annually to the Inspectorate of Public Health.
There is always the risk that a complication with a medical examination or medical treatment may occur. For example, after an operation, infection or bleeding may occur. These risks cannot always be avoided, however, we provide information about complications that are known to occur more frequently during your examination or treatment in advance. If a complication occurs, it does not automatically mean that the specialist or other healthcare professionals have done something wrong.
If you believe that you have suffered injury and damages as a result of negligence or careless medical treatment, then this may be a reason for you to hold SMMC liable.
If you would like to submit a claim because of suffered damage(s) as a result of your visit to the hospital, you can submit a complaint and indicate what happened and what your damage(s) consist(s) of. The Legal department will conduct an internal investigation and, depending on the nature of the claim, can forward (part of) the claim to SMMC’s medical liability insurer.
SMMC is not liable for loss or damage to your personal belongings. Therefore, we advise you to leave valuables such as jewelry, watches, and other items of (sentimental) value at home. It is also not advised to bring laptops and tablets to the hospital. Patients of the In-patient Wards can ask about the possibility of placing their valuables in safekeeping.
If you have lost something, please report this to the relevant department as soon as possible. It may still be found.
If you believe that you have suffered loss or damage through the fault or negligence of (an employee of) the hospital (for example to nightwear, glasses or dentures), you can submit a request to the hospital for compensation. This does not automatically mean that the hospital is liable. This will be investigated by the Legal Department of the hospital. You can submit a request for compensation by filling out an online Material Damage Claim Form. You can also fill out a paper form available on the wards.
At SMMC, we prioritize quality and safety of care. Patients can trust that every effort will be made to ensure their safety during their visit or stay. Sometimes, however, there are instances when things don’t go as planned which may lead to an incident or a serious event. If an issue arises during treatment, we will always inform you and your loved ones right away. These situations, though unfortunate, provide us with valuable opportunities to learn and enhance our care and safety practices.
Here at our hospital, we differentiate between an incident and a calamity but both are classified as unexpected events.
An incident, also known as a patient safety event, typically has minimal or no consequences for the patient. It refers to an unintended occurrence in the care process that may have resulted, could have resulted, or could potentially result in harm to the patient. A calamity, or sentinel event, involves a serious consequence, often with significant harm to the patient.
In the case of an incident or near incident, we report it to the Hospital Safety/Faults or Near Accidents (FONA) Committee. This committee investigates the event and provides recommendations to improve our care processes.
A calamity refers to an unexpected or unintended event that significantly impacts the quality of care, resulting in a patient’s death or serious harm. If a calamity occurs, it is reported to the Board of Directors. The Retrospectus Committee conducts a thorough investigation and the Board then reports the incident to the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Public Health, Social Affairs, and Labor (VSA).
The committee consists of SMMC professionals trained for the purpose of conducting research into incidents and calamities. The investigation involves healthcare professionals as well as the patient and/or their family and the goal is to answer the question: what happened, how could it have happened and how can we prevent a similar event in the future? The committee advises on measures to be taken to prevent a calamity in the future. In addition, the report is discussed with the patient and/or their family. The Board of Directors sends the final report to the Inspectorate of VSA which reviews the investigation.