Emergency room schedules published on the SNS portal indicate that, as of 9:40 am today, five Gynecology and Obstetrics departments are closed in Almada, Vila Franca de Xira, Barreiro, Abrantes, and Aveiro. Additionally, the Pediatric emergency at Barreiro hospital is also shut.
Only handling cases referred by the SNS 24 Line or INEM are the Pediatric emergency at Hospital Doutor Fernando da Fonseca (Amadora-Sintra), the Obstetrics department in Santarém, and the Gynecology and Obstetrics services in Braga (from 8:00 pm to midnight), S. Francisco Xavier in Lisbon (8:00 am to midnight), and Leiria (9:00 am to midnight).
On Saturday, four Gynecology and Obstetrics emergencies—Aveiro, Caldas da Rainha, Vila Franca de Xira, and Almada—and one Pediatric emergency (Vila Franca de Xira) will be closed. The referenced Pediatric emergencies of São Francisco Xavier (Lisbon), Amadora-Sintra, and Loures hospital will remain as such throughout the weekend.
Furthermore, only referrals via the SNS 24 Line or INEM will be accepted at the Gynecology and Obstetrics emergencies in Leiria, São Francisco Xavier (midnight to 8:00 am), Braga (midnight to 8:00 am), and Amadora-Sintra (8:00 am to midnight) on Saturday.
On Sunday, a Pediatric emergency at Vila Franca de Xira and five Gynecology and Obstetrics services in Almada, Setúbal, Vila Franca de Xira, Caldas da Rainha, and Aveiro will be closed.
The Obstetrics and Gynecology emergencies of Amadora-Sintra (from midnight to 24:00) and Leiria, as well as the Obstetrics department in Santarém (from midnight to 8:30 pm), will function on a referral basis.
The hospital-updated schedules show that approximately 128 emergency services will be open nationwide on Saturday and 127 on Sunday. This includes Gynecology and Obstetrics emergencies running under the pilot project scheme (32 on Saturday and 29 on Sunday), which requires prior contact with the SNS 24 line.
These emergency service constraints predominantly arise from a shortage of specialist doctors needed to cover shifts, a more common situation during vacation periods like summer.
Health authorities urge the public to contact the SNS24 Line (808 24 24 24) for proper guidance before heading to an emergency department.
