A source from the General Inspectorate of Health Activities (IGAS) has announced that the authorities have detected signs of disciplinary responsibility in some of the cases reported for alleged malpractice in the Surgery department at Faro hospital.
When asked by Lusa about the development of the process, triggered in April 2023 with a complaint from an assistant doctor at the Algarve University Hospital Center, reporting alleged bad practices in the service, that entity stated that the investigation process has been concluded and that there are grounds for instituting disciplinary proceedings.
“The investigation process has been concluded and evidence of disciplinary responsibility has been found in some cases involving all those involved, from which facts emerge that justify the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against some of the professionals involved in the medical assistance in question”, reads a note sent to Lusa news agency by IGAS.
Diana Pereira reported several cases of alleged “error/negligence” in the Surgery Department at Faro hospital, which occurred between January and March 2023. According to the doctor, of the 11 cases reported, three patients died, two were hospitalised in intermediate care at the time and the rest suffered bodily injuries associated with the alleged medical errors.
Following the complaints, in June last year, the Order of Physicians (OM) preventively suspended two surgeons from the unit for six months, a measure made public through an announcement from the Disciplinary Council of the Southern Region of the OM, and which included the director of the service and another surgeon from the Algarve hospital.
Lusa asked IGAS for access to the case, but that organisation clarified that it “is secret until the indictment”, arguing that its public disclosure could “compromise the effectiveness of the investigation that is continuing, now in the context of disciplinary proceedings”.
Lusa tried to obtain a position on the development of the case of the doctor who made the complaints, but Diana Pereira did not want to comment at this stage of the process, referring any clarifications to IGAS and the Order of Physicians.
The Portuguese Medical Association and the current Algarve Local Health Unit (ULS), which is part of the Algarve University Hospital Centre (CHUA), were also contacted by Lusa about the case, but have not yet given any response.
These complaints also led the Public Prosecutor's Office to open an investigation, which is taking place at the Department of Investigation and Criminal Prosecution (DIAP) in Faro.
Source Lusa - Photo courtesy of Depositphotos.com
