WILLEMSTAD - The Board of Directors of Curaçao Medical Center (CMC) has taken note of incorrect information regarding the capacity planning department. In light of this, the CMC Board of Directors would like to inform our patients and the community of Curaçao about how the surgery planning process works.
The surgery planning process is a collaboration between the capacity planning department and the medical specialists. The process works as follows: the medical specialist determines if a patient needs surgery and in which period the patient should undergo the procedure. Once the medical specialist makes these decisions, they inform the capacity planning department accordingly. It is the capacity planning department’s responsibility to schedule the surgeries and not to determine who will or will not undergo surgery.
Current Situation
Currently, CMC is facing a shortage of surgery room staff. Due to this situation, only 3 to 4 surgery rooms are currently operational. In this context, the capacity planning department contacts the medical specialists to determine which patients will be given priority for the surgery. Subsequently, the medical specialist, as part of their responsibility, informs the patient about the scheduling. The CMC Board of Directors emphasizes that all emergency cases will always be given priority. The capacity planning department’s role is simply to coordinate and facilitate those selected for surgery.
The CMC Board of Directors continues to make every effort to address the issue of surgery room staff shortages and relies on the cooperation of our patients and the Curaçao community in this regard.