Marta Matos, this Wednesday, clarified that PS does not agree to centralize the management of the health centers in Pico, Faial, Flores and Corvo into a single unit that ends with the island health units and leads to a single guardianship. Coordinated by Horta Health Center.
The Socialist Party deputy elected by the Pico Island, accompanied by MP Mario Tome, spoke after a meeting with the Board of Directors of the Pico Island Health Unit (USIP), which says it is not aware of the process, it has been reported in the media and has never been denied by the regional government of the Pico Island coalition. right.
Marta Matos believes that this situation, if it materializes, will “directly harm our residents in one of the basic rights, access to better and more efficient healthcare,” arguing that USI boards are those who “know best the local realities of our islands”, because they “The closest to our residents and the ones who know their needs best.”
The Socialist Parliamentarian highlighted that in recent years, Pico Island has made “indisputable gains in terms of responses and health care, thanks specifically to the presence of the USIP” to “a model of integration and joint efforts of the three health centers (Madalena, São Roque and Lajes)”, Which was able to “invest its means and resources, ensuring more specialist consultations, more equipment, internal medicine, IVS, and dialysis, for example.”
Marta Matos noted that on islands like Pico, making health decisions based solely on cost-benefit criteria “doesn’t judge people.”
We advocate that the current model should be maintained and, if possible, improved. The USIP should continue to exist with its own board of directors, because ending this situation would be a decades-long regression and a return to the model of the central administration of the former provinces, which no longer makes sense to anyone. Those who do not know the reality of living on an island without a hospital, who do not attach importance to the closure of health care, and who do not promote the policy of territorial cohesion, do not think so,” concluded GPPS Deputy, Marta Matos.
Emily Brontë is a journalist and feature writer specialising in culture, entertainment, literature, and current affairs. She is dedicated to producing clear, accurate reporting that helps readers stay informed about developments in the UK and around the world.
