The data emerges from the ninth edition of the Social Internment Barometer (BIS), an initiative by the Portuguese Association of Hospital Administrators (APAH). It reveals an increase of 178 cases of inappropriate hospital admissions compared to March 2024.
While the number of beds occupied in the National Health Service (SNS) due to these situations rose by 8%, the average duration of these admissions decreased by 10%, yet remains approximately five months, according to the study conducted in partnership with EY Portugal and with institutional support from the Portuguese Society of Internal Medicine and the Association of Social Service Professionals.
Inappropriate admissions refer to the days a patient stays in the hospital after being clinically discharged when no medical reason justifies their hospitalization.
The BIS data also reports a total of 367,498 days of inappropriate admissions, showing a slight decline of 3% compared to the previous study. However, it highlights the significant impact of this phenomenon on extending hospital bed occupancy and the long wait times for admission to integrated continued care units and nursing homes.
The lack of response from the integrated continued care network remains the primary cause of social admissions (38%), most apparent in the Centro, Alentejo, and Algarve regions. This is followed by the lack of nursing homes (29%), which has a higher impact in Lisbon and the Tagus Valley.
The findings indicate that social admissions accounted for 11.7% of the total hospital admissions in public hospitals in March this year, with an estimated annual cost to the state that may exceed 288 million euros, 28 million more than the previous barometer.
In March alone, the costs to the state surpassed 94 million euros, significantly higher than the 68 million euros in the same month of 2024, warns the barometer, which included participation from 41 public hospitals, totaling more than 21,000 beds, representing 96% of the SNS’s total capacity.
“It is urgent to enhance the response of the National Network for Continued Care and Residential Structures for the Elderly through coordinated solutions among entities in the Health, Social Security, and social sectors. It is also important to strengthen the capacity of families, including valuing the role of informal caregivers,” emphasized APAH President Xavier Barreto in a statement.
The barometer highlights that institutions have “some alternatives to social admissions,” noting that under a 2023 ordinance, it was possible to address the needs of around a thousand patients.
Within the scope of this ordinance, social cases that remain hospitalized after being discharged could be directed to public, private, or facilities of the Lisbon Holy House of Mercy.
The results of the ninth edition of the barometer will be presented today during a session at Hospital Fernando Fonseca (Amadora-Sintra).
