13 SMMC nurses complete Basic Acute Care course

CAY HILL: St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) is pleased to announce that 13 of its registered nurses recently completed a six-month-long basic acute care (BAC) course as part of the training program of the Caribbean Health Academy (CARIBHA). The new graduates are Bianca Cannegieter, Kalisha Claxton- Trotman, Griselda Gibs, Shanna Holaman, Anthony Jagmohan, Sharisa Hodge, Khalela Warno, Gary Sille, Desia Hodge-George, Mykandra Simmons, Aleisha Jagmohan-Alexis, Marie St. Cyr and Joyclyn Mason- Joseph and hail from the Medical/Surgical Ward, the Pediatrics Ward, the Obstetrics and Gynecology Ward, the Intensive Care Unit and the Emergency Room.

The certification means that the nurses will be able to continue their nursing education upgrading with VU University Hospital (VUMC Academy) in areas of intensive care and emergency care, earning an accredited diploma from the Netherlands. VUMC Academy was commissioned by and receives funding from the Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Sports in the Netherlands to provide training to nurses on Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, St. Maarten, and St. Eustatius. The training enables the islands to respond more flexibly and effectively to acute care situations such as a pandemic or natural disaster.

This is the second time that nurses from SMMC have participated in the course and SMMC congratulates them on their decision to further their knowledge and training to provide more specialized care to patients.

SMMC’s Manager of InPatient Care and Education Antonio Pantophlet congratulated the graduates saying “It is a unique achievement to train such a large group of nurses in both Dutch and English in such a short period of time and our nurses have once again made us proud by successfully completing their training. This speaks volumes to their dedication to our hospital and to our patients as well as to their commitment to their personal and professional development”.