Santarem Hospital suspends additional surgical activities due to lack of doctors

The Santarem hospital announced it would suspend, as of Monday, additional surgeries for several specialist doctors who refuse to work more than the 150 hours of overtime required by law.

In its statement, the board of directors of the Hospital de Santarem justifies this measure by a request “made by several specialist doctors and interns in the specialty” who declared their “unwillingness to provide any additional work beyond the maximum limit of 150 hours.”

In view of this refusal, “additional surgical activities to be carried out by the elements expressing this unavailability are suspended as of October 2 and as long as they continue.”

The hospital said in a statement that there would be an exception for surgeries already scheduled at that time, and “surgery times may be allocated to other specialties depending on the waiting list.”

When asked by Lusa, hospital staff said that the request to justify the need to work more than 150 overtime hours “was made by 81% of the doctors in the general surgery service.”

As for performing surgeries, “surgeons will continue to perform all scheduled surgeries during normal business hours,” the facility said in an emailed response, explaining that “additional activities will only be undertaken when there is a wait time.” to justify this, the same cannot be said for the waiting list for general surgery at the District Hospital of Santarem (HDS), which has a controlled waiting list since it has turned to the private and social sector to collaborate on this issue since April. recovery”.

Because the state annually enters into an agreement with the agreed sector, according to which, if the maximum guaranteed response time (TMRG) is exceeded, the patient is operated on under a surgical voucher at another facility, HDS “does not expect an increase in surgical waiting lists,” it clarified. administration.

The District Hospital of Santarem, EPE (HDS), provides health care to a resident population of approximately 184.6 thousand inhabitants in the municipalities of Almeirim, Alpiarza, Cartacho, Chamusca, Coruche, Golegán, Salvaterra de Magos, Santarem and Rio Mayor in an area of ​​3,500 square meters kilometers (km).

In addition to its area of ​​influence, it also provides assistance to the population of other municipalities of the district (Abrantes, Alcanena, Constancia, Entroncamento, Ferreira do Zezere, Massan, Ouren, Sardol, Sertan, Tomar, Torres Novas, Vila de Rey, Vila Nova da Barquinha, Gavian) with a total population of about 233 thousand people in such specialties as vascular surgery, dermatology, infectious diseases, psychiatry and oncological radiation therapy.