WILLEMSTAD - Curaçao is set to have its first general practitioner post at the Curaçao Medical Center (CMC). The plan is to officially commence operations of this post on January 1, 2024. The ministerial decree, an official document required for its establishment, has already been received by the Parliament of Curaçao, known as the "Staten." A working group will now finalize the details.
Integrating a general practitioner post within a hospital to alleviate the burden on emergency services is quite common. Many patients seek care at the Emergency Room for issues that could be addressed by a general practitioner, especially outside regular office hours. However, in Curaçao, it has been mostly a topic of discussion for years.
The Curaçao General Practitioners Association (CHV), which has long advocated for the establishment of a general practitioner post, is closely involved in the plans. To facilitate its establishment, it has even been decided to provide compensation to general practitioners. This compensation amounts to a fixed fee of 1 guilder per patient per month until the General Practitioner Post becomes operational. This amount will be paid through the Social Insurance Bank (SVB).
On April 20, an amount of 1.8 million guilders was transferred to the SVB for this initiative. The government's healthcare implementation organization is required to provide a financial report on this amount to the Ministry of Finance by the end of July 2023 and the end of January 2024.