Beautioful Punta Cana, Just BEWARE

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DreamChaser1998

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Beautiful Punta Cana, Just BE AWARE

Hello,
We were on our 10th Annual Family Vacation.. Myself(36 yrs. old), my son(15 yrs. old), my daughter(9 yrs. old) & my Mother-in-Law(55 yrs. old) & my beloved Father-in-law(60 yrs. old). We went to a Resort in Punta Cana. The day we arrived was Friday afternoon on July 12th, 2002. What a BEAUTIFUL resort.. The people were friendly & wonderful. The food was exceptional. We have had a bad year,.. 9/11 happened in the USA & on 9/12, my father-in-law's mother passed away. They are from NYC. On January 5th, 2002, my father-in-laws youngest of 2 children (37 yrs. old), was found dead in his apartment, drug overdose. So this Caribbean vacation was supposed to be the start of better things ahead. Bob (My father-in-law), was to retire in 18 months, with the kids & I moving to Virginia with him & his wife, so that they could enjoy their only 2 grandchildren in retirement. We had 3 EXTREMELY relaxing & enjoyment filled days there. But... On Monday July 15th, 2002...My father-in-law (My children's"Bompa"), started having a heart attack on the beach. We got the resort Doctor to come down & they took him to the resort clinic. From there he was transported by a van type ambulance to a hospital/clinic 5 minutes away. The van was VERY hot, with no air conditioner & the windows closed. No treatment was done in the ambulance & they did not even secure the stretcher from moving. His wife held onto it as best she could. At the Hospital.. they had no paddles to restart the heart, no defibulator, no ekg, no machines. They did not even know how to perform CPR. The oxygen they gave him was like a hot mist, not what we know is needed. He could breath better without it. Within a half hour from the doctor from the resort reaching Bob until he was in the hospital care, he passed away. One 1/2 hour!!! They are just not equipped to deal with emergency situations!!! I would highly recommend Punta Cana for a Phemonial vacation place, BUT.. if you think you have medical problems, do NOT go. My Father-in-law seen a cardiologist 3 weeks prior to us leaving the States & he was given TOP BILL OF HEALTH. Go figure... he died in a beautiful place, with the people he loved most.... Don't let it happen to you.. my kids are heart broken & their special time with their grandparents turned into an unreal, living nightmare...
 
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MommC

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I'm so sorry for your loss........

My condolences go out to you and your family.

This is one of the downfalls of vacationing in isolated areas no matter how beautiful they are.

As we grow older we all need to be aware that should we require emergency medical attention our choice of "vacation" spots can have a direct bearing on our "survival" rate.

We experienced the same situation with a dear neighbour just this past year in Juan Dolio however in his case the results were much different. Two Drs. with a two minute walk, two excellant clinics within five minutes and an above average ambulance service to transport to a private cardiology clinic in San Pedro which was a 15 minute ride away. It also helped that my hubby was an emergency room hospital worker for 10 yrs and knew the symptoms of heart problems and also CPR and what else needed to be done until the Dr arrived.

Again my sympathy to your family and may you find peace in the knowledge that he passed away in one of the most beautiful spots on earth with his loved ones by his side.........
 
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Nelly

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My deepest condolenses to you and your family. This is, of course, not as serious as what you experienced but a friend of mine suffered a ruptured appendix during her vacation in PC last winter. From what I understand, other than finding it difficult to understand what was going on due to the language barrier, she received the proper diagnosis and very good treatment.
 
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PJT

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Jan 8, 2002
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You have my sympathy

You have my heartfelt sympathy for you and your family. What a tragedy.

MommC is right in saying this is one of the downfalls of vacationing in isolated areas. Emergency (trauma) medicine in the D.R. is not noteworthy, other than being able to mend broken bones and close wounds. Best facilities are in the capital. Throughout the country, proper fully equipped and staffed medical facilities are few and the infrastructure ( ambulances w/trained medics) to support them are very limited and in most locations absent.

However, your unfortunate experience has my interest, as there is a modern private hospital in the Punta Cana area.

Again, accept my sympathy and condolences, PJT
 
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mido

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May 18, 2002
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My deepest condolences to you and your family.

Now, for everybody else who is reading this thread and wants to vacation in the Bavaro Punta Cana area:

There is a very good clinic called Hospiten close to the police station only 15 minutes away from the resorts. This clinic is up to highest standards and is run by a Spanish company.
 
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Bugsey34

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Feb 15, 2002
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I'm very sorry to hear about your loss. I hope this coming year is a better one for your family.
 
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Ken

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Emergency health care is a problem, not only for visitors but also for the expatriate residents. Response time is not what is expected many places in the US, Canada, and Europe, nor, in many cases, is the care provided by those responding to the emergency. (This is not unique to the DR. I have been on most of the islands of the eastern Caribbean and can report that the emergency health care situation on them is no better than, if as good as, the Dominican Republic.)

Expatriates know this and make the best plans they can. My wife and I have the number of the small clinic in Sosua that we would call in the event of an emergency because we know someone (either nurse or doctor) is on duty 24 hours a day and because it has an ambulance. I'm sure other expatriates also have emergency plans for their areas.

Perhaps a service this board could provide would be to collect recommendations from expatriates on who should be called or where someone should be taken in the event of an emergency. This could be a permanent reference that could be consulted by anyone coming on a visit who thought there might be a need for emergency medical assistance.
 
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DreamChaser1998

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mido said:
My deepest condolences to you and your family.

Now, for everybody else who is reading this thread and wants to vacation in the Bavaro Punta Cana area:

There is a very good clinic called Hospiten close to the police station only 15 minutes away from the resorts. This clinic is up to highest standards and is run by a Spanish company.
Click to expand...

Myself & my 2 children went to the Hospital 15 to 25 minutes away (closer to the Punta Cana Airport), by way of taxi... that is where they were taking Bob. Somehow, he ending up at the Hospital (Sosa? not sure if that is correct), 5 minutes from the resort...

I'm not saying not to go to Punta Cana. Bob was in perfect health... he was 60 years old & fit. P.C. is an up & coming Resort area.... I just wanted people aware of traveling.. at this point in time there, (WE LOVED IT) that the emergency medical care for serious/ life threatening illnesses is VERY limited.
 
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DreamChaser1998

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Information Needed

Hi,
Just me again... I was wondering if anyone living in the Punta Cana area would know of a Taxi Cab driver, by the name of Abel. He was a young man, in his 20's or early 30's. I believe his cab or cab number was 33. He drove me & my kids to the second hospital we went to on Monday evening, July 15th.. He was a very comforting man to the kids & I.... & Spoke very well english... He had told us his dream was to come to New York City sometime... He was singing " New York, New York" by, Frank Sinatra... As I have told you, My In-Laws are from New York & Bob passed away that night. But the kids & I remember how sweet & knowlegable this man, Abel was. He had given me his business card & added his cell phone number to it. Somehow in the craziness, I've lost it.... I have something special for him, that I'd like to send him & would like to thank him for being a great person. I would LOVE to get his cell number to be able to talk to him personally... Any information anyone has would be GREAT appreciated.
Sincerely,
Mary Smith
 
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DreamChaser1998

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Thank You All

I'd like to thank you all for your words of kindness & information...

Ken... It'd be a GREAT idea to add more information on medical care here...

I wish more countries had message boards like these....

I had read from these boards on & off since Jan. 2002, when we started planning this trip...

Someone had mentioned & recommened a book:Dominican Republic, The Rough Guide; by Sean Harvey... Was a GREAT inforamative book...
 
Robert

Robert

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DreamChaser1998...

That's very sad, I'm truly sorry for you and your family.

I think Ken's idea is well overdue and something we will get the ball rolling on ASAP!
 
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Dolores1

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May 3, 2000
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Our sympathies are with you. Having organized many family reunions we understand what special moments they are.

By the description of the location, this could have been the Hospiten Bavaro hospital. See their web site at http://www.hospiten.es/english/bavaro.htm

Was this the hospital? Supposedly, this hospital is fully equipped and was built to service the needs of visiting tourists with modern technology.
 
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Charlene G. Pic

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Jul 13, 2002
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Sorry for your loss

Hi Mary, I am sitting here, so full of emotion after reading your post. I will be going on vacation next week to Tennesse, and will be taking my parents, and sister and her boyfriend. My father recently underwent minor surgery to have a pace maker put in. I felt guilty about taking so many vacations to the Carribean, I got to thinking about my father, what if something happened to him while we were out of the country! Could I make it back in time? It really started to work on me, so when when this trip came up, I didn't heasitate to ask my family along. I work in a hospital laboratory and whenever we travel I naturally look for hospitals, clinic's. It's just something I've always done. We will be in Punta Cana in Dec. staying at the Paradisus, if I can find your taxi cab driver I will, and give him any message you have if you havn't been able to reach him yet. Yes Punta Cana is beautiful and so are the Dominican people. Take care, Char
 
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AnnaC

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Mary, I'm sorry for your loss. If it was time for him to go, at least he was around his loved ones and with time you'll remember the wonderful couple of days you did have together.
Thirteen years ago I took my Mom to the DR and she died four months later ( not related to being there) She also died of a heart attack while here in Canada and in the intensive care ward.
I will always remember the great time we had toghter and how much fun she had.
 
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DreamChaser1998

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Reply

Dolores said:
Our sympathies are with you. Having organized many family reunions we understand what special moments they are.

By the description of the location, this could have been the Hospiten Bavaro hospital. See their web site at http://www.hospiten.es/english/bavaro.htm

Was this the hospital? Supposedly, this hospital is fully equipped and was built to service the needs of visiting tourists with modern technology.
Click to expand...

Hi Dolores,
That looks like the hospital that Bob was Suppose to go to at 1st. They took him to a clinic/hospital 5 minutes away from Feista Bavaro Resort instead. I thought it was called a Hospital/Clinic Sosa... but as I'm thinking here, I think the Doctor's name last name was Sosa.
 
Hillbilly

Hillbilly

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Jan 1, 2002
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Very Sorry for your loss

I went swimming with my Grandfather the day he died...we came home, had lunch, and he went to take a nap...

It seems that more could have been done, but that is a 'perhaps' so hopefully you can console the children and tell them that he had had a wonderful vacation with them...

Please do come back, with the family...and thank you for your kind words..

HB
 
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mido

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May 18, 2002
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Hi DreamChaser!

I found your cabdriver (Abel, Taxi # 33). His Tel. is 809-481-3959.
By the way, you were definitely at the "Clinica Sosa", I checked it out.
 
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PJT

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Jan 8, 2002
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Clinic

DreamChaser1998, I believe the clinic involved in this tragedy is Centro Medico Sosa Bavaro. It is located about a block from the service entrance of the Fiesta and it is across the street from the front of Plaza Bavaro. Phone nos. are: 809-552-0812, 552-0979, and 688-4780.

Note: Hospiten is located about 8-9 mile to the east, about 10-15 minutes from the Fiesta. Regards, PJT
 
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Music

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dreamchaser

My condolences to you and your family I'm so sorry to hear about your loss.

I also wanted to say this is a great board, I am so happy to see everyone being so helpful to you dreamchaser.
I would like to say you are all great people!
I just recently came on this board and I lreally like it here!
 
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DreamChaser1998

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Aug 1, 2002
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Thank you all again & again

I'd like to say thank you all!!! You are so kind & informative... I appreciate reading your posts... They have helped me deal the last couple days... Today (it is now 12:25AM... here in Massachusetts we are on the same time as the D.R.) is August 15th, 2002... it has been a month since Bob has passed... In alot of ways it still doesn't seem real... You all do not know how much you have really helped... on the posts & in emails.... You all have hearts of gold.... Bless you All...
Luv,
Mary XO
 
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