A notice sent today announced the activation of level 1 (out of four levels) on Thursday due to “increased demand for health services, especially for respiratory conditions, and the need to bolster response capacity during a period of heightened assistive pressure.”
“Level 1 is triggered when there is a continuous increase in demand, particularly for hospital admissions, and it involves implementing various reinforcement measures,” explained the ULS.
These measures include “increasing the number of beds in previously identified services, temporarily strengthening healthcare teams, expediting clinical discharges—prioritizing those occurring before noon—and transferring patients already discharged but facing social barriers” to the Bernardino Lopes de Oliveira Hospital in Alcobaça.
The ULS added that, “to improve flow management and ensure a more efficient response, patients with lower clinical complexity are also being directed to the Hospital of Pombal.”
“With these measures, the ULS aims to ensure continuity and quality of care during the period of increased seasonal pressure,” they stated, assuring that “the situation will continue to be monitored daily, allowing for adjustment of measures as needed.”
The ULS also appealed to the public to reserve the emergency service for genuinely urgent situations this winter and to always call the SNS 24 Line (808 24 24 24) before heading to this service.
The area under the influence of the ULS in the Leiria Region comprises the municipalities of Alcobaça, Batalha, Leiria, Marinha Grande, Nazaré, Ourém, Pombal, and Porto de Mós, encompassing three hospitals (Leiria, Pombal, and Alcobaça) and 10 health centers.
Portugal has entered an epidemic phase of flu with a growing trend, showing an increase in confirmed cases, including intensive care admissions, the National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge (Insa) warned today.
“Data on flu activity this 2025-26 season (…) showed that in week 48, which began on November 24, flu activity is epidemic,” noted Raquel Guiomar, head of the National Reference Laboratory for the Influenza Virus and Other Respiratory Viruses at Insa.
According to the researcher, in the last two to three weeks, there has been “an increase in the number of laboratory-confirmed flu virus infections” reported by the Sentinel Doctors Network.
The Epidemiological Surveillance Bulletin for Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses from Insa, released today, states that during the week of November 24 to 30, there was an increase in the incidence rate of severe acute respiratory infections compared to previous weeks, reaching 10.5 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
The age groups from zero to four years and 65 years or older showed the greatest increase, with the latter exhibiting the highest value.
This week, 82 severe cases of acute respiratory infection were admitted to reporting ULS, with 10 intensive care unit admissions reported.
