~ 17th conference to be held again in St. Maarten ~
SIMPSON BAY--More than 100 physicians, general practitioners, nurses, medical students and other healthcare stakeholders from across the Caribbean gathered at Simpson Bay Resort on November 15 and 16 for the 15th Dutch Antilles and South America (DAS) Conference.
Coordinators hailed this year’s conference, which comprised two days of learning, collaboration and inspiration, as being a “resounding success.” The intention is to hold the 17th conference in St Maarten, after hosting the 16th in Curaçao next year.
The DAS Conference is a connected Caribbean cooperation between specialised and family medicine.
“All in all, the 15th DAS Conference met its objectives of bringing together healthcare professionals from across the region, advancing medical knowledge and contributing to the health and wellness of our local communities,” coordinators said. “Attendees of the conference were very satisfied about the programme and said they especially appreciated the wide variety of topics covered, the excellent lunches served by Simpson Bay Resort, and the magnificent and relaxed atmosphere that characterised this conference.”
The 15th DAS Conference was the first DAS conference ever in St. Maarten, combining world-class medical education with St. Maarten’s warm hospitality.
Some of the objectives were improving national and international peer learning and sharing good practices. In this context, knowledge exchange played an essential role in promoting healthcare and economic growth in St. Maarten. The conference was dedicated not only to advancing medical knowledge, but also to benefiting the health and well-being of the local community.
Apart from the scientific presentations about, amongst other subjects, infectious diseases, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, kidney diseases and cardiovascular diseases, the conference provided a unique opportunity for healthcare professionals to interact and, due to this, it delivered an engaging and dynamic experience, building stronger networks across the region, coordinators said.
The meeting was chaired by St Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) internist-nephrologist Dr. Gabe van Essen, introducing all speakers and giving the attendees ample time to ask questions to the presenters.
This year’s conference had some outstanding speakers, including Dutch Quarter Clinic general practitioner Dr. Radha Sanchit, who spoke about medically-unexplained physical complaints, including chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, and irritable bowel syndrome. She showed pictures of the Dutch Quarter living circumstances. Dr. Laurien Reinders of the Bush Road Clinic gave a presentation about the role of the general practitioner in sexual health, which had the attendants listening almost breathlessly, but also leading to interesting questions and expressions of fun.
Data protection professional Guadalupe Verwaayen, who works at SMMC as ICT-application administrator, also one of the main organisers of this event, delivered a keynote speech on the subject of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data protection in healthcare, providing healthcare professionals with skills to better serve their patients.
The 16th DAS Conference will be in Curaçao in October 2025. Coordinators said the plan is to organise the 17th DAS Conference in St. Maarten in 2026.
