The Regional Health Authority for the Algarve announced today it already has taken the steps necessary to overcome the shortage of nurses in the region and will start recruiting as soon as possible.
This will be welcome news for the Union of Portuguese Nurses whose members have been working below the legal staffing minimums put in place by the government to ensure patient care and safety.
Since the beginning of May nurses in the Algarve have been highlighting a lack of numbers to cope with patients, especially in Vila Real de Santo António, Faro and Albufeira.
The shortage was blamed by each party on an inability to decide which was responsible, the Regional Health Authority or the Algarve Hospitals Group.
The Regional Health Authority today stated that it is "aware of the lack of human resources in nursing" and claims to have taken the necessary steps earlier this year with a view to increasing nursing numbers.
The Authority already has received "authorisation from the Ministry of Health and the Secretary of the Treasury to recruit 45 more nurses for the Hospitals of the Algarve to ensure the normal operation of services particularly in Faro, Portimão and Loulé."
"The recruitment process will start as soon as possible," said the Authority, without specifying any deadlines.
