Yesterday, the SNS Executive Board clarified that the planned closure of pediatric services in Portimão will come in to force between Friday and Sunday, starting today.
Due to the absence of a doctor specialising in Pediatrics at the Portimão unit, care will be provided by non-specialised doctors and care by specialist doctors will be provided by the Pediatric Emergency Service in Faro. Departments included are Delivery Block, Emergency Service, Inpatient Pediatrics, Neonatology and Nursery.
In a meeting held on Thursday the National Health Service (SNS) the Board of Directors and the Clinical and Nursing Directorate, the directorates of the Gynecology/Obstetrics and Pediatrics/Neonatology services at CHUA, the Regional Health Administration of the Algarve and the National Institute of Medical Emergency, evaluated the operating conditions at the hospital in Portimão.
"Due to the limitation of medical human resources in pediatrics, as a result of absences due to parenting and unforeseen circumstances due to illness, the availability of the institution's professionals and the opening of resources from other hospitals in the SNS network are being reassessed, in order to maintain a structured and consistent response during the seasonal summer period", the resulting statement reads.
The management also says that, "from the weekend of June 2nd to 4th, the suspension of activity" of the delivery block and the pediatric emergency service in Portimão was already foreseen, and publicly announced, "there is no change in the process, compared to what was previously announced".
By Sunday, June 4, the contingency plan for the summer months will be reviewed and released by the Executive Board-SNS, depending on the need to preserve the highest safety and quality criteria, avoiding any risk situation for pregnant women or children, as well as for the activity of professionals", said the representative.
The National Institute of Medical Emergencies (INEM) will remain on standby, reinforcing the emergency response, in accordance with the established contingency plan.
"Primary Health Care will provide support in the response to the child with an acute illness, mitigating the use of the emergency service", says the Executive Board of the SNS.
Hours before this statement was released, the PSD (Social Democratic Party) of the Algarve denounced, in a statement to Lusa news agency, "the very serious decision to close, without any date set" for the reopening.
“This is an unacceptable decision, it is the SNS that is withdrawing from the western Algarve: pregnant women will give birth, in some cases, more than 100km away from home, any episode of urgency or hospitalisation of all children and young people up to 18 years old will take place in Faro”, said Cristóvão Norte, president of PSD Algarve, quoted in the note.
Source https://postal.pt/
