WILLEMSTAD - The Curaçao Medical Center (CMC) gets a big slap on the wrist for the way in which surgeon Menno Misset was treated. His suspension should be lifted immediately. The Health Inspector was also indirectly addressed.
In 2018, the then inspector Jan Huurman already concluded that there was no reason to doubt Misset's professional competence. Despite this, the new hospital wanted to get rid of him.
The CMC itself set up a committee of inquiry to investigate Misset's medical dysfunction and whether he can function properly and return to the hospital.
The investigation committee concluded, just like the Inspectorate in 2018, that no medical dysfunction of Misset has been established. But because of the labor relations in the work area, it was not wise to let the surgeon return.
The judge gave short shrift to the working method and conclusions of the special committee of inquiry. Its substantiation is not sufficient to terminate the employment contract.
The judge criticizes the fact that CMC did not investigate the underlying problem with the surgeon and that no attempt was made to solve it.
Based on the available information, the judge states that it was also not possible to rule whether the refusal of a number of colleagues to continue working with Misset justifies the termination of the employment contract with him.
Health Care Inspectorate
The immediate reason for Missets' suspension and the second investigation by the Healthcare Inspectorate, now by Dr. Sirving Keli, was the media attention in May 2020 for complaints from two of Misset’s former patients.
CMC itself has not investigated the merits of these complaints, nor the merits of the other complaints against Misset that were reported to the Inspectorate after the television broadcasts.
CMC has left the investigation to the Health Care Inspectorate. But that investigation has still not led to definitive findings and conclusions almost three years later.
The court has determined that neither party is aware of whether the Inspectorate has issued advice to the minister on Misset's request for exemption to get back to work.
This is striking, because in doing so the Inspectorate is acting contrary to its own complaints' procedure.
The Inspectorate was also slapped on the wrist in previous legal proceedings. The Inspectorate concluded then that a patient's cancer recurrence was the result of Misset's incomplete surgery.
Based on that, the patient started litigation. But in court it turned out that there were indeed surgery reports and that everything had gone according to standard procedure.