On Monday, INEM admitted that there have been cases of call waiting at the Centers for Urgent Patient Disposal (CODU) due to an increase in the number of contacts in recent days and a “significant shortage” of technicians providing these services.
“INEM confirms that it has received more calls in recent days, many of which are related to the heat,” the institute responsible for coordinating the Integrated Emergency Medical System on the Portuguese mainland told Lusa.
The National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (ANTEM) today reported “severe limitations” in emergency response, with more than 50 calls on hold and service delays ranging from 10 to 15 minutes.
“Today, as on other occasions, there were delays in service of approximately 10-15 minutes. There were serious restrictions: about 50 calls were waiting to be answered, verified, notified and dispatched,” the association warned in a message.
In its response, INEM said CODU “has also received information from several overcrowded emergency services in hospitals,” meaning that “more calls are being received from teams on the ground to CODU to adequately refer pre-hospital patients to hospital.”
Additionally, “INEM is known to have a significant shortage of specialists in the Pre-Hospital Emergency Physician (TEPH) category, which, among other functions, handles calls and activates and monitors CODU resources,” the institute added.
These factors lead to “waiting times for calls to CODU,” INEM said, stressing that citizens should only call the European emergency number, 112, in serious or life-threatening situations.
“In all other non-emergency situations, citizens should contact SNS 24 at 808 24 24 24 for appropriate referrals and advice,” the institute said.
CODU INEM are emergency medical services centers that coordinate and manage a portfolio of response resources—ambulances, emergency and critical care vehicles, motorcycles, and helicopters—that are selected based on the clinical situation of the victims.
Calls to 112 are answered by PSP and GNR and are forwarded only to CODU INEM for those associated with assistance in the health sector.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.