The Primary Health Care Plan in Lisbon allows protocols with the private and social sectors

According to the Minister of Health, a plan to improve access to primary health care in the Lisbon and Tagus region will be presented in the coming weeks, which will allow for the conclusion of protocols with the social and private sectors.

Speaking to reporters at the Ministry of Health, Manuel Pizarro said the plan “will be presented in the coming weeks” and will have two goals: expand access to family health teams and create a mechanism for accessing primary health care for those who do not have assigned family doctor.

“These people should be able to access primary health care models in an attempt to overcome the restrictions they have experienced in recent months in order to get a password for consultation,” a government official said, acknowledging that in this context (USF) model C , also called “doctors’ cooperatives”, could be considered.

Asked about the regulation of USF Model C, the minister replied, “There is no prejudice against the possible establishment of Model C healthcare facilities by physician cooperatives or IPSSS. The issue is being studied from a technical point of view to find out if it is possible to take such a measure.”

“We are going to find an answer, because it is certainly not useless for people to create measures that do not actually contribute to better solutions,” he added.

Manuel Pizarro also said that some health centers already have measures in place that the government wants to be replicated in others, citing the example of the Via Verde measure in place in Seixal where users without family doctors can make an appointment the day before, by phone, consultation and assistance of team members, which includes doctors, nurses and assistants.

“We must generalize these alternative models so that people do not end up in a situation that is deeply unworthy, I repeat, namely the circumstance of arriving at dawn on any day of the week or month to the doors of the medical center. , get the password for the consultation,” he insisted.

He also said that “when needed” turning to the private and social sectors to guarantee access to primary health care is not prejudiced.

“Our goal is to create public family health centers for all Portuguese, naturally also in the regions of Lisbon and the Tagus Valley. Until that is possible, we must have alternative models that allow people to access primary care for themselves, improve their health, and because this allows another very important aspect, which is to mitigate the excessive demand for help,” he added.