Withholding information on a female employee that got preferential treatment from the management of USZV.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The Inspectorate is getting a hard time to get USZV to fully cooperate in turning over information to them as they began the scheduled audit on medical referrals.
SMN News tried to obtain information on at least two cases that raised eyebrows, where it can be considered that proper procedures were not followed when it comes to medical referrals. USZV said they conducted an internal investigation but were not willing to turn over that information for the sake of clarity.
Director USZV Glen Carty admitted that at least one mistake was made with the referral of the USZV staff but said that mistake is rectifiable. Carty said the person who arranged the medical referral made a mistake when they booked the patient at the Renaissance. When press for more information regarding the medical referral Carty then referred SMN News to the Inspectorate and even said he would have his lawyers consult with the Inspectorate to see what information they are allowed to divulge.
SMN News contacted the inspectorate via email requesting the information on the two patients, one being the former partner of the Inspector General who is allegedly having an intimate relationship with a senior management staff at USZV. This alleged affair is widely rumored in the community and while Carty knows the patient is the former partner of the inspectorate he chose to refer SMN News to the Inspectorate in order to create a conflict of interest.
One of the cases SMN News is seeking information on is the case of Samuel Allen Jr who was airlifted to the Dominican Republic in a comatose state. The medical referral at SMMC was signed off by a gastroenterologist instead of a trauma surgeon since there is no neurologist at the St. Maarten Medical Center.
SMN News also requested information on the staff member of USZV who went to Curacao for medical check-ups. Based on investigations conducted by SMN News the patient who resides and works on St. Maarten is not known at St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) that has the necessary equipment to conduct check-ups. SMN News found out that the patient had her doctor in Curacao provide her with a medical transferal letter to himself, instead of having a specialist on St. Maarten namely SMMC refer the patient abroad for further medical check-ups.
A response from the Inspectorate on Thursday states the following:
Referring to your e-mails dated October 11th and October 13th in which you make inquiries about 2 medical referral cases by SZV,namely Mr. S. Allen jr. and an employee of SZV, identified by you as Ms. Lijkwan, the Inspectorate would like to inform you as follows.
As you may know, the Inspectorate is scheduled to audit the referral dept. of SZV. This intention to audit the department was published in the local media mid-July. Due to vacation and understaffing this has not happened yet. However, in anticipation of this audit, the Inspectorate has started an investigation of these two cases. The Inspectorate has to date not received all information it needs to perform a proper review of the cases and finalize its investigation. Once the investigation is complete, a report will be drafted.
It is the duty of the Inspectorate to supervise and enforce all healthcare ordinances and regulations and achieve compliance. The Inspectorate has been given the authority and means by law to achieve this compliance, also from SZV.
The healthcare arrangements SZV has in place for its employees have to be established in
labor regulations which need to be submitted to the supervisory board of SZV and need to be approved by the Minister of VSA. It is the duty of the Inspectorate to make sure that these labor regulations insofar as they pertain to the medical care to be received by SZV staff and their family members ensure adequate treatment and -in that respect- that proper policy and procedures are in place to ensure that the required care is provided,that all staff members are treated equally, that the care received is of sufficient quality and that the available funds are used properly.
The Inspectorate started it's investigation into the two cases in question yesterday and has received part of the requested information so far. As SZV has questioned the Inspectorate's authority to investigate referrals of SZV staff not all the requested information has been received.
If SZV is unwilling to provide the Inspectorate with the rest of the information that was requested
then we will be forced to take further measures.
Kind regards,
Ashanti van Heyningen
