The morphological ultrasound conducted at a clinic in Pinhal Novo (Setúbal) in 2023 failed to detect a severe malformation in a fetus. The infant was born with an incomplete right leg.
Inquiries by Lusa revealed that the Health Regulatory Entity (ERS) received four complaints in 2023 concerning the owner of the Queluz and Pinhal Novo clinics, with two additional complaints in 2024 and two more already this year.
The ERS emphasized that complaints received may or may not involve cases of “medical negligence,” noting that the subject is “a very broad topic” that encompasses various situations, making “its stratification complex.”
Within the ERS’s scope of competencies, complaints are categorized based on the adequacy and relevance of healthcare services/procedures, the technical quality of healthcare services/procedures, the quality of health information provided, and the right to treatment with appropriate means, delivered humanely, with promptness, technical correctness, privacy, and respect.
The ERS highlighted that healthcare professionals are not subject to regulation by the Health Regulatory Entity regarding their activities, as they are regulated and disciplined by their respective public professional associations.
The regulator also noted that complaints involving potential medical negligence are forwarded to the respective professional orders and other competent bodies, namely the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The Correio da Manhã reported that the Public Prosecutor’s Office has already initiated an investigation into the Pinhal Novo clinic where the morphological ultrasound was conducted.
In response, the clinic stated that “all ultrasounds are performed by specialist doctors,” further adding that the clinical report “did not identify any visible anomaly.”
Regarding the case, the clinic mentioned that they only became aware of it through the media, adding that neither the parents nor any family members have contacted the health unit “formally or informally.”
