The President of the Order of Physicians (OM) warned this Monday that a “red line” in the National Health Service (SNS) has been crossed and that “everything is in the hands of the government”, warning that “it is not just intentions that need to be achieved”.
Speaking to reporters at the end of an emergency meeting of the Porto Medical Forum, Carlos Cortes expressed concern about “what could happen” in Portuguese hospitals in the coming weeks and stressed that the decision involved accepting doctors’ suggestions.
“We understand that this is not the situation today, this year, it is a situation that has been worsening in recent years and even in recent decades, but now we have reached the red line limit that cannot be overcome. surpassed and surpasses,” he said.
According to Carlos Cortés, “the health and safety of the Portuguese people are currently in the hands of the Ministry of Health, the various decisions presented by the trade unions, the OM (…) are all within the purview of the government.”
“At this point, the government needs to step in and implement more than promises, more than intentions, it doesn’t just declare its passion for SNS, it doesn’t just have intentions, we want the government to implement the protection of SNS. “, – he said.
“It is necessary to agree on and implement the decisions that doctors presented to the government,” he emphasized.
Defending that “without doctors there is no social network,” Carlos Cortes expressed concern about the coming times.
“I am very concerned about what may happen in the coming weeks and especially in November and December, when we know that the NHS will be under greater pressure due to the decompensation of chronic diseases, due to the increase in morbidity. respiratory diseases,” he said.
The official also called on the government to “first come to an agreement with medical trade unions, which have been making persistent requests for several months to improve the working conditions of doctors.”
“Secondly, ask the Government to respect the commitments it has made to the Medical Association in relation to the Medical Association’s constitution. We want to ensure that the OM’s competencies are in the field of medical quality, in the field of protecting the health of all Portuguese people and especially in the field of medical training,” he listed.
The Medical Forum, held this afternoon, was attended by representatives of the Order of Doctors, the National Association of Doctors of Public Health, the National Federation of Doctors, the Independent Union of Doctors, the Association of Portuguese Doctors of the Pharmaceutical Industry, the Portuguese Association of General and Medical Industry Doctors. Family Medicine, Portuguese Federation of Medical Scientific Societies, Portuguese Association of Hospital Professionals and National Association of Medical Students as invited observer.