Who are APHs and what do they represent on SNS

Adam Rocha’s opinion
President of the Portuguese Association of Allied Health Technicians

APTAS – The Portuguese Association of Health Professionals Assistants was founded in 2020, in the midst of an epidemic, which at its inception had the pursuit of a primary objective, which is to replace a profession of paramount importance to society, giving professionals, who present themselves every day for the benefit of others, the worthy recognition of their mission and their inclusion as professionals In private health teams, giving them personal well-being, which far exceeds any financial issue.

Under this assumption, APTAS has at the root of its existence, a comprehensive view of the allied health technician, and what he represents within the NHS, knowing that it will be hard work, as it will overcome dogmas from various quarters, and especially among professionals in the profession, it will be a crusade.

What we see as an essential basis for this noble profession, from a current/future point of view, is the qualification of all Operations Assistants, who provide services within the functions required by the reference of the Assistant Health Technician, and this is the document used and approved by ANQEP – National Agency for Qualification and Vocational Education.

However, in order to understand the importance of these professionals to the different institutions in which they are included, we have to understand a little about the changes that are taking place in our society, demographic, Portugal is getting older and older, the family, which a few decades ago was still extended, and quickly moved To a nuclear family, and family support has completely changed in the last twenty years, various gains on the social and economic level, as well as the development of science, have extended life expectancy, we will have more and more old people, but we need more and more care.

This is particularly reflected in long-term patients, depleting the capacity of continuing care units or even homes, but residents will also be more aware of their rights, and this presents an additional challenge for health professionals, and for the National Health Service.

With this in mind, APTAS focuses on its vision of wanting to better prepare allied health technicians, both current and operational assistants, as well as those who are trained. The know-how, the know-how and especially the know-how that must be necessary to seek a more humane franchise service. ABTASS – Portuguese Association of Allied Health Technicians However, the government continues to underestimate us and I might even say by civil society, if we look at it, we find that it is rarely mentioned by the national media, with some exceptions, the truth is that it has more value The neighbor’s cat who was hanging from a tree, which is worth posting at once, what these professionals, who give a little of themselves every day, do for the better care of our family/yours members, but forgotten, minimum wage, by profession Rapid physical/emotional exhaustion, and the responsibility of caring for the most vulnerable, sick/aging.

In view of the struggle these professionals have waged over a period of nearly 15 years, in which a blind law has cast them into the general functional limbo of the state, and taken away from them the dignity of the profession, into which they will enter, they had to pass specific training, and that, as of 2008, they can Anyone can attend these care institutions without any specific requirements.

It is a pity that this only happens in Portugal, we are in fact the poor relatives of the European Union countries, because in fact, in all Member States and other countries, one does not enter health care institutions, either in public or in private. , without having specific training, let alone having a specific profession that matches them up with other health professionals and values ​​them as such.

Unfortunately, we continue down this path, and we expect that this year, and perhaps even in 2023, there will not be any changes in this non-professional profession of health operations assistants, because in light of what we are doing he saw in the parliamentary debates where the current Minister of Said on Creating a profession already approved for allied health technicians, same saying it would be something to be done throughout the legislature, and deceiving all the Portuguese included in this problem, since the promise made by the prime minister, was to include it in the state budget in 2022 to create those Occupation.

The excuse for the downfall of the former ministerial team cannot justify postponing this profession, even if there is a whole work already done, and this should not be thrown in the trash, because that is not efficient or effective, going back to square one, it is in fact, showing the bureaucratic system And the state is at the highest level, draining our public accounts, and in doing so we are able to justify some additional taxes to add to the already high tax burden that the Portuguese suffer.