Dialysis is a treatment that removes wastes and excess fluid from your blood when your kidneys are not able to do that on their own.

In the early stages of chronic kidney disease, you do not need dialysis.   Since chronic kidney failure often happens slowly, sometimes people do not even know how bad they feel, until they start dialysis and begin to feel much better. The early stages can last for many years. But if your kidneys fail, you will need dialysis or a kidney transplant to keep you alive.  For more information on Dialysis please check out our Links page in the Medical Section.

Living Life to the fullest.

The first step is deciding where you want to go and when. If you decide to visit our beautiful island of St Maarten in the sunny Caribbean, then SMMC is here to facilitate your treatments while you enjoy your stay to the fullest.

You will want to make arrangements with the SMMC at least four weeks in advance of your visit—the more advance notice, the better. This is especially important as St Maarten is a popular travel destination. In case of emergency travel you may be able to get into our dialysis center with shorter notice but this would be the exception rather than the rule.  So make sure you get a confirmation from us that you are scheduled before committing yourself to travel and accommodation arrangements. Even when you plan well in advance, it's a good idea to be as flexible as possible. That will help make it easier for us to arrange for your dialysis treatments and make your trip more relaxing.

Insurance

It's also a good idea to check on your insurance coverage. Questions about insurance and reimbursement for treatments abroad can be answered before your trip, so you won't have any surprises. Some insurance companies do not cover for dialysis treatment (or PD supplies) outside of their territories. You'll want to see what's covered by your individual plan.

SMMC Dialysis Unit:

Our Dialysis Department is located on the premises of our hospital facility.  It was fully renovated in September 2004, expanding from 4 to 10 units to accommodate the growing number of dialysis requests. In September 2006 all 10 units have been updated to Gambro AK 200s units. Water purification is achieved by reverse osmosis and all materials being used meet European and  U.S.  Standards. The Dialysis Unit is on the ground-floor and easily accessible by wheel-chair, fully air-conditioned and offers the patients a relaxed atmosphere.

The staff

Our resident medical Internist supervises the medical care of the patients. The Dialysis unit is manned at all times by qualified registered nurses with certified specialization in Dialysis Care in order to give patients the best possible care.  English is the general language spoken on the hospital premises, however our multilingual abilities of our staff is able to cater to various languages.

Patient Services & Activities

Scheduled meals and drinks are provided for all patients.  For those wishing to stay in contact with the world during their treatments wireless internet connection is available to those with their own laptop computer. Cable TV with popular American programs and news is on and a wide variety of magazines and books are on hand for those who prefer a more relaxed atmosphere.   Additional social activities for patients and their families are organized during the course of the year.

Reservations

Please realize that space is limited and that reservations are made on a “first come-first served” basis. To be eligible for dialysis you need to provide us with some (medical) information. There is an information-brochure available for downloading in Word format at the bottom of this page. In this brochure you can find the forms that need to be completed and send back. Please contact us at least one month before confirming your trip, to avoid disappointment. 

Payment

Charges for dialysis are aproxomatly US$ 440 per treatment excluding lab work (if neccesary) and Epotin (Epogen). Payment must be made in cash or by credit card. We honor the following credit cards: Visa / Master Card / Discover / American Express and Diners Club. Unfortunately, we do not accept forgein medical insurance. You would be expected to pay your charges and claim your insurance re-imbursement personaly.

Requirements of the SMMC

For patients to be dialyzed at our center please ensure that the following tests are done no longer than six (6) weeks prior to the first planned treatment at the SMMC:

1. M.R.S.A.screening (Methycilline Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus)
   Two sets of swabs taken for MRSA screening. Each set consists of swabs (not blood cultures) from the following areas: nose, throat, wounds (if any), insertion wound of dialysis catheter (if any), urine culture if patient has a bladder catheter. According to governing European Standards, one set (of at least two swabs) have to be taken before dialysis and one set after dialysis the same day. We can only treat M.R.S.A. negative patients.
2. HIV screening and Hepatitis B and C.
   Patients must test negative on all three tests!

Important:

1. Our policy is that we do not accept any patients unless we have received all information on paper. This means that the patient has to ensure that all results are on St. Maarten in time or we will have to refuse treatment of the patient.
2. Please fax all results to SMMC no later than three weeks before departure of the patient, but preferably earlier.
3. Please confirm the receipt of those results with the SMMC dialysis department before departure to avoid disappointment.
4. We reserve the right to refuse patients for any of the following reasons:
   - Psychiatric disorders
   - Contagious diseases (a.o. HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C or MRSA - positive)
   - Medical instability
   - Less than one year on dialysis
   
   

Contact information

If you wish to receive more information or if you would like  to make reservations please feel free to call, fax or e-mail us.

Download Brochure and Forms

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