Obviously I'll ask Dr. van der Vaart, but does anyone know if a) there is a neurologist on Curacao and b) have any personal experience with him/her? Thanks! Alex

Can the moderator tell me why whenever we post this same subject comes up? When I reviewed the message the subject was 'neurologist on curacao'...help! Thanks! Alex

I'd guess your browser has caching enabled. You should check your message entry page when you start a new subject before posting, and then if it's wrong, hold Shift while clicking on the refresh icon.

I'll change the subject line for you.

Jake

PS No idea on the neurologist.

Thanks Jake!

They've had a very hard time keeping neurologists in Curacao (national health care doesn't pay on-time, so the dr's end up years behind in fees...)--last time I checked (last year), there was only one (Dr. Rico), and one extra forced out of retirement to help (Dr. Merkies). The office (whose a/c didn't work the entire 2003) is in SEHOS (St. Elizabeth Hospital) in Curacao, tel: (09) 462-4900 is the main number you call to get put thru to Neurology, where you'd make your appt. It can take a few months to get an appt., and even if you know what tests you'll need, you have to go to first appt w/dr., then go back another time for testing (entire other set of appointments). You will have to pay first for any testing (they accept cc's), and pay the Dr. with cash when you visit (around 120-220 fls, or only fls 60 if they're in a good mood). Be very patient (ha) when calling, English is not well understood at SEHOS. You should definitely get a referral from your house dr. here (Bonaire) to the neurologist before going to Curacao.

Ruth, thanks very much for the info.--discouraging though it may be . I really appreciate it. Alex

If you're paying for things yourself, consider Aruba too--the hospital there (Oduber) has a larger neurology dept, and an MRI. And many also go to the larger/1st class clinics in Venezuela and/or Cuba (everyone I've known to go says they're the best, but I have no personal experience).

The toughest part about all of the specialists is getting the appt. I think they're quite overwhelmed by the staggering patient:dr. ratio. I've had varying success b/c most of the receptionist's (in my experience) language skills are lacking. Of course, we are asking them to speak 4 languages (can you imagine trying to find a quad-lingual in the US to work in that type of job?). Enlist a local person to help make the appt. if necessary.

Did you know we now have our own chiropractor on Bonaire? It's really a good thing, because a Dutch chiropractor is like a US Chiropractor & Physical Therapist combined (and he's better than every chiroprator I ever saw in the US). He loves what he does, and he's excellent. His office is in a blue house just a few bldgs north of Voz di Bonaire; name: Mikhail (Michael) Verhoef.

Ruth, thanks for the additional thoughts & info. The chiropractor does sound great. I think I need further diagnosis before I go that route, but I do have chronic back problems so I will definitely keep that in mind for the future. Hopefully Dr. van der Vaart's office can help with making an appointment (I agree that my monolinguism is a problem and that you could NEVER expect the level of language skills exhibited here in the States--puts me to shame!). I have a $1000 deductible then my insurance pays 100% (of most things) outside the U.S. but only 80% in the U.S. so Aruba, Cuba or South America may indeed be good options (although in the U.S. I could sleep & eat for free!). Sigh. Not sure what I'll wind up doing but I really appreciate your thoughts. Thanks much, Alex

Hello,

Does anyone know the telephone number or email adres of Micheal Verhoef? Thanks

(599) 717-7760 or 717-7766--if his answering machine picks up, the outgoing message is in Dutch, but it's fine to leave message in English (his is perfect).