The Dominican Republic medical blog will feature weekly posts about health related issues in the Caribbean. Our primary focus will be in the tourist area on the north coast of the island including Sosua, Cabarete, Puerto Plata and Samana! We will cover everything the Caribbean traveler will need to know before any medical situation arises. Our postings will cover issues such as travel insurance, local doctors, private medical facilities, emergency situations, precautions to take while visiting and everything you can think of that relates to Dominican Republic medical.
The Dominican Republic has adequate medical facilities in and around the tourist destinations as well as in the larger cities! The north coast has a few pretty good private hospitals including a general and specialized hospital called Clinica Bournigal (Bournigal Medical Center) in Puerto Plata, 809-586 2342.
There is a brand new hospital being built in Sosua as of this posting called Centro Medico and it will be a state of the art medical center with an emergency room! When you get away from the tourist zone and larger cities the quality of care can vary greatly! There is an emergency 911 service within Santo Domingo, but its reliability is questionable.
There is a private ambulance service that operates in Santo Domingo, Santiago, Puerto Plata and La Romana called Movi-Med Ambulance Service - 809-970-0707. And another statewide ambulance service called ProMed, which also operates in Santo Domingo, Santiago, Puerto Plata and La Romana, 809-412-5555. ProMed expects full payment at the time of transport.
Servi-Med in Sosua/Cabarete is available 24 hours a day for emergency medical assistance. 809-571-2903.
On the north coast and in the major tourist areas many medical facilities will have someone who can speak english and many doctors will be fluent in several languages. Again, in the rural areas the availability of prescription drugs varies and specific brand name drugs may not be available in the Dominican Republic. You should make sure to bring an adequate supply of prescription drugs while visiting the island. When you travel to remote areas of the island emergency services range from extremely limited to nonexistent. Blood supplies are limited, and not all facilities have blood on hand even for emergencies.
In the next post we will cover what safety items to pack and why it is important to bring your own personal medical kit. We will also advise about food and water precautions. Visit the Dominican Republic medical blog regularly for updates about health related issues that affect the Caribbean and prevention measures every traveler should know to insure a wonderful vacation holiday in paradise.