“The MDM rejects blaming healthcare professionals or an alleged lack of organization of services when the issue is precisely the absence of conditions for any organization to function,” the movement states in a communiqué.
Specifically, the MDM refers to the recent case of a woman from Barreiro who lost her baby after being referred to the hospital in Cascais, while also highlighting the “severe and continuous deterioration” of the National Health Service (SNS), particularly in emergency obstetric services.
Highlighting the shortage of professionals, the excessive overtime beyond legal limits, and the lack of adequate equipment and facilities, the movement warns that “no service can withstand this scenario of disinvestment and wear” and places responsibility on the government, accusing it of neglecting the rights of pregnant women to healthcare access.
As a result, they advocate for a series of measures, beginning with the “immediate repeal” of mandatory telephone pre-triage through the SNS Grávida line, which they claim has gaps and delays urgent and essential care access.
The movement also calls for increased human and material resources in maternities and birthing centers, better career development and salaries for professionals, faster recruitment processes in specialties like gynecology/obstetrics, anesthesia, psychology, and pediatrics, as well as expanding neonatology coverage to more regions of the country.
“We demand that the SNS has the necessary means to ensure the safety of women and avoid tragic outcomes that are often preventable,” the statement emphasizes.
Regarding the case of the pregnant woman from Barreiro who lost her baby after being directed to the hospital in Cascais, the Minister of Health assured on Friday that “there was no deficiency” in the service provided.
“There was no deficiency in care, classification, referral, or upon arrival at the location, which was, indeed, the hospital that had, at that moment, the required differentiated perinatal care conditions, namely neonatology,” stated Ana Paula Martins.
