From left: Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor VSA Richard Panneflek, VSA Inspectorate head Dr. Earl Best, SMMC Medical Director and OMT Chairman Dr. Felix Holiday, Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs and AMI Physician Dr. Kiarash Mirkia.
CAY HILL--Ahead of the transfer of care to its new storm-resilient Auxiliary Care Facility (ACF), St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) gave a tour to Prime Minister and Minister of General Affairs Silveria Jacobs, Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor VSA Richard Panneflek and Health Inspectorate head Dr. Earl Best on Monday, October 5, SMMC announced in a press release on Monday.
The off-premises ACF features 16 beds of which six are intensive-care and 10 are medium-care. Of the 10 medium-care beds, four are in complete isolation and segregation, and are intended for suspected COVID-19 patients who are awaiting polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results.
A medium-care room at the ACF.
In the event of a surge in COVID-19-related hospitalisations, SMMC has an additional isolation capacity of 11 beds within the hospital.
According to the release, the ACF was created by welding together special medically-outfitted containers (Hospitainers) donated by the Dutch Ministry of Health and shipping containers, and securely anchoring them to a solid concrete foundation. The containers are all connected by way of a one-way hallway with sealed doors between each section.
The main hallway in the ACF connecting all rooms is outfitted with vents that allow fresh air in while purifying the air inside using HEPA filters before releasing it back into the environment as clean, virus-free air. The entire facility is covered by one roof as additional temperature control.
In the event that a storm or hurricane poses a direct threat to St. Maarten, COVID-19 patients will be transferred to SMMC. “Non-COVID-19 patients may be evacuated to an approved nearby facility or airlifted to a hospital within the Dutch Kingdom if needed,” according to the release.
SMMC said the project to make its COVID-19 facilities more storm-resilient was made possible in part by funds from the St. Maarten Recovery, Reconstruction and Resilience Trust Fund funded by the Netherlands and managed by the World Bank.
SMMC extended its gratitude to its employees, the government of St. Maarten, the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport VWS, the World Bank and the Aspen Medical International (AMI) team for all of their contributions to the health and well-being of the people of St. Maarten.
SMMC urged persons experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 such as fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headaches, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting and diarrhoea to call their house doctor or contact the Collective Prevention Services hotline 914 or tel. 542-1122, 542-1222.
Persons experiencing symptoms such as trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion, the inability to awaken or stay awake and bluish lips or face should contact the Ambulance Department by calling 912 and await further instructions.
