The Minister of Health announced today that the new National System of Access to Consultations and Surgeries (SINACC) will replace the current Integrated Management System for Surgical Patients (SIGIC), which was established in 2004.
“When a doctor makes a surgical proposal, I have the right to know my position on the national waiting list,” stated Ana Paula Martins at the press conference presenting the conclusions of Wednesday’s Council of Ministers meeting.
This new access system for consultations and surgeries was “created with the patient in mind,” the minister emphasized, adding that through the application, website, and contact center of the SNS, patients will be able to track their position on the waiting list.
Furthermore, upon reaching the critical point of the maximum guaranteed response time for a surgery (75%), which is clinically defined, the patient will receive a contact and be “given the freedom to choose” whether to stay at their hospital or opt for a hospital in the social or private sectors in their region that has an agreement with SINACC, the minister highlighted.
“This is very important because people need to be able to make that choice,” Ana Paula Martins stressed.
According to the minister, SINACC also establishes a regime of incompatibilities, which are more detailed than those in SIGIC, defining situations where a doctor cannot participate in surgeries and consultations.
A doctor working in the private or social sector in a specific area cannot refer patients to the SNS and then operate them in a public hospital, she exemplified.
SINACC is based on a platform funded by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), with the first phase costing five million euros, utilizing artificial intelligence systems.
The platform allows for the identification of anomalies, such as unexpected prices for surgeries and significantly growing waiting lists at certain hospitals, the minister explained.
“We will have two categories in terms of timeframes: priority and non-priority surgeries,” emphasized Ana Paula Martins, mentioning that priority surgeries will cover oncology and cardiology, with a deadline of 30 days.
“The non-priority ones have a timeframe of up to six months,” she added.
SINACC also enables Local Health Units (ULS) with increasing waiting lists expected not to be addressed within a given year to carry out “preventive outsourcing,” allowing patient referrals to the social or private sectors or even to another public hospital within the same region, she stated.
SINACC was tested in the Local Health Units (ULS) of Coimbra and Alto Ave and at the Portuguese Institute of Oncology (IPO) in Lisbon.
[News updated at 19:13]
Relevant Read: Government approves creation of regional emergencies
