Originally, when the decision to renovate the island’s HOH was made, more than a decade ago, GOA only had 98 million to spend.
Hospitals are living, breathing entities, which require tweaking, maintenance and modifications continuously, thus sometimes between 2011 and 2013, AIB and APFA raised the money and formed SOGA, a company designed to engage a reputable architect and a solid construction company, set to upgrade the leased LandsAruba facility, operated by a foundation, SZA, managing HOH.
Why make it easy if you can make it complicated??
And thus our hair-raising, blood-curdling story begins.
We’re 8 years into the saga that never ends.
And we’re at an impasse, deadlocked.
The love-hate triangle of OHL, the construction company, an international giant, SOGA, basically a board, made up of three members incapable of taking any decisions, and LANDARUBA, imprisoned by a totally unqualified, politically appointed dictator.
They have been quagmired, at a standstill for many months.
When OHL, remember, an international construction company handed over the finished, spanking new hospital wing, the shiny 5th floor, state of the art operating theaters, were never moved in. HOH never relocated into the 12 new ICU units, nor did it claim the incredible dialysis center with a negative pressure room. OHO never occupied the more than 20.000 feet of perfect, patient wards, and staff facilities.
What’s happening, I asked.
No money, no staff.
So they are keeping the old and the new wings fully air-conditioned and all lit up, while, sending inaccurate press released with misleading information out, pointing finger in all directions, except theirs.
Think about it. Why are their electric bills so high? If HOH doesn’t relocate from the old to the new, renovations cannot go on, and you have to keep both facilities cool and bright, bingo, high costs.
And that’s where we are.
Each door of every operating theater cost $65.000. They are hermetic. And automatic. And the dictator insisted they were a must. They had to be purchased. They have never been used.
Each of these operating theaters has TWO not just one air handler, as backup, then the whole building has more. The dictator insisted it was a must, 8-fold protection.
The Lab has a new reverse-osmosis plant, which they never used.
The 12 ICU units with a fantastic view and the latest equipment were pilfered by the old ICU department during Covid19, and the area now stands empty and stark. Very quiet too.
The original reno project tackled utilities first, setting up a totally redundant seven-day water reserve, a potential legionella bacteria haven, next to the new electric installation. The dictator insisted it was a must, they had to live up to American specs, in view of the fact that Medical Tourism was coming.
But because HOH only moved partially into its new facilities, it is operating TWO power plants, and Elmar collects for two transformers Awg 28,000 each, a month.
The details are fascinating, but they have a common denominator: Maintenance.
Maintenance is the Achilles heel.
All disasters relating to technology, smoke, water, smell, hot water, and air-conditioning are linked to HOH’s total failure in maintaining anything.
No filter changes, no oil changes, the expensive boilers are left to choke on their own sludge, because no maintenance schedules exist.
THUS: while there were warning signs the year before, nothing was done about the tech threat, and HOH has used THE HACK excuse to make a great number of docs disappear.
THUS: While the fire was small, HOH reacted without thinking, opening doors, and allowing smoke to enter the wards with a vengeance.
THUS: The yucky mold spores, water damage, disgusting gook and rust in the area between floors, abandoned crawl spaces used by the original builders to hide pipes and cables, upset everyone, who mistakenly identified the odors as diesel fumes.
THUS: The hot water leak, resulted from a human error, when an HOH employee fiddled with the dials and increase pressure in the pipes to a point of bursting.
THUS: Cleaners fished a 2meter-long tangle of roots and debris from the MAIN drain pipe, that was never cleaned, not even once. That blockage prevented the rain water from flowing off the roof. They were warned their drains were clogged.
THUS: When a 0 was left off a purchase order and IT equipment came in short, shame prevented the techs from saying anything or admitting fault.
If HOH was first concerned about patients’ safety, it would step up simple maintenance, the periodic revision of all systems, instead of just putting out frequent fires.
And talking about first concerns, the outgoing minister of health showed very little interest in the HOH project and never even introduced himself to the people doing the work. In that aspect, Schwengle was around much more!
And none of the past directors managed to stick around: Sometime in 2013 Dr. Falcone, then Theo de Kool in 2014, then De Kool with Ezzard Cilié, then just Ezzard Cilié, then Cilié, and Ronnie van Trigt, from 2019 to 2020, then Van Trigt & Anco Ringeling, then Van Tright and Freek Korver, plus Greg Croeze from March 2020, Greg Croeze and Freek Korver until September 2020, Jacco Vroegop & Greg Croeze from September 2020 to Present.
THUS: People are left without supervision, each department-head is now an emperor, in charge of their own kingdom, not taking any feedback, nor suggestions. The head of the union, a department-head, she knows she is untouchable.
Here you have it, the reasons why HOH is in dire financial straits: Procrastination on crucial decisions, offended when reminded to move on and becoming resentful as a result, chronic lack of supervision, zero accountability, long toes, passive aggressive/emotional reactions, a knack of making money disappear, first 10 then 20 million, tolerating theft, promoting the wrong, unqualified people, while they are educated, they have no real expertise, they are stubborn, refuse to learn from outsiders, and when pressured into a decision, rise to new levels of incompetence.
And as for the rest my dear Marquis, all is well, all is well. (Lyrics of a famous French chanson, from 1936, “Tout va tres bien madame la marquise.” It is the funniest, how the Marquis took his life, on the day he found out he was broke, knocking some candles down, which started a fire, destroying the chateau, jumping to the stables, killing a grey horse, but apart from that, Madame la Marquise, things are just fine, and all is well.)
