The program, launched in partnership with the Leiria District Center for Social Security, was unveiled late this afternoon at the Ansião Town Hall in the district of Leiria. It aims to establish a “green channel” between the managing institutions of residential entities for the elderly (ERPI) and the reference hospital unit in Coimbra, to prevent unnecessary patient transfers in cases of acute illness.
“Our goal is clear: to ensure that the patient remains in their bed, at their location, with professionals they know, rather than being transported to a hospital emergency room, isolated on a stretcher, often in a depersonalized service where they will frequently be alone,” stated Alexandre Lourenço, President of the Local Health Unit (ULS) of Coimbra.
The program seeks to improve responses and tailor them to the real needs of each individual, with professionals from the institutions trained by ULS Coimbra, support through a qualified telephone line with access to all clinical data, and medical support to activate responses.
Responses can involve the institution’s nurse, activation of integrated continuous care teams, or the Clinical Call Center (CAC) of Hospital do Avelar (Ansião), which operates 24 hours a day and is equipped to conduct X-rays, electrocardiograms, and clinical analyses with medical and nursing support, providing a response as close as possible to the patient’s place of residence.
“We are aware that recovery is much easier in the patient’s residence. Our goal is to provide immediate comfort to the nurses at ERPI or activate our teams to visit establishments and provide necessary care to patients,” detailed Alexandre Lourenço.
The project builds on an experience already tested in the district of Leiria and involves 16 elderly institutions — 12 from the social sector and four private — in the municipalities of Ansião, Alvaiázere, Figueiró dos Vinhos, Castanheira de Pera, and Pedrógão Grande.
During the program presentation, João Paulo Pedrosa, head of the Leiria District Center for Social Security, pointed out that in 2024, there were 4,746 transfers of elderly from those municipalities to emergency services in Coimbra.
The program “aims to optimize attendance, restricting it to what is strictly necessary, by creating solutions and agile mechanisms for coordination between ERPI health professionals and emergency service staff.”
Promoters of LinhaCuidar@Coimbra believe this project will decrease the need for hospital emergency transfers among the elderly, significantly improving responses within a framework of home care or closer proximity.
The qualified phone line will function as a “green channel” of communication between the ERPI and emergency services to determine the best response to the patient’s healthcare needs.
Today, ULS Coimbra and the Nossa Senhora da Guia Foundation, which manages the Hospital do Avelar, signed a cooperation agreement to enhance healthcare services for the residents of Alvaiázere, Ansião, Castanheira de Pera, Figueiró dos Vinhos, and Pedrógão Grande municipalities in the Leiria district, and Pampilhosa da Serra in the Coimbra district.
This agreement will enable ULS Coimbra to keep the CAC operational and offer consultations in various specialties, as well as scheduled surgeries in the fields of neurosurgery (spine), orthopedics, and ophthalmology (cataracts), serving a territorial universe of 35,780 users.
