The Minister of Health says that the operation of the SNS network has allowed patients to receive treatment

The Health Minister said on Wednesday that the operation of the NHS network had enabled patient care, recognizing that in some cases there was excessive pressure on health workers and medical emergencies.

More than 30 emergency cases are operating in various specialties, from the 11th of this month until next Saturday, due to the lack of doctors to guarantee shifts, according to a weekly emergency reorganization plan drawn up by the Executive Directorate of the National Security Service.

In response to a question on the sidelines of the “Digitization of Health in the Service of People” conference, in Lisbon, promoted by the National Health Agreement, about how the plan would advance, Health Minister Manuel Pizarro stated that it was possible to respond to patients, but he expressed concern about the burden it would impose. This situation represents for professionals.

“The whole emergency situation worries me a lot. It would be ridiculous to pretend that we don’t have a problem, we have a problem. Now, the truth is that the operation of the SNS network has made it possible to serve people.”

He admitted that in some cases, there is increased pressure on doctors and other health professionals in some emergency situations, because in addition to the patients they have to attend normally, they still have to accompany those who come from other places.

He added that in other cases, there is inconvenience to patients and an excessive burden on the pre-hospital emergency system, which is forced to transport patients greater distances.

“So far, the National Health Service has provided a full response to the Portuguese and I hope that the situation will calm down in the meantime,” the minister stressed.

At the conference, Manuel Pizarro said that despite the restrictions, emergency services serve between 15 and 20 thousand users daily.

In the memo issued on Saturday, DE-SNS acknowledges that the National Health Service is going through a “critical period of its existence” and says the reorganization of the response in emergency services has been forced due to the unavailability of “an adequate number of doctors” to undertake extraordinary work.