While speaking to journalists in Braga on the occasion of the 46th anniversary of the National Health Service (SNS), José Luís Carneiro acknowledged that this public system of population care is “shaken.”
“Here is another example of a matter where the Government promised the world, and a year and a half later, what we see is that the Government has failed completely, particularly in responding to hospital emergencies,” he stated.
For Carneiro, the SNS is a pillar of democracy that is “shaken” because the Government had promised solutions to hospital emergency issues within 100 days, yet the current situation is “worse.”
“It is only possible to solve the needs of the National Health Service structurally and durably with a wide range of measures, including valuing primary health care, community care, home care, and scheduled specialty consultations in primary health care to prevent over-concentration in hospital care,” he argued.
He also mentioned the need to “continue with integrated responsibility centers for the management and coordination of resources found in intermediate and hospital structures.”
Moreover, he advocated for increased investment to ensure Portugal can “retain” doctors and nurses, whom he described as “the best health professionals” in the world.
