The chaotic state of organisation within the Algarve’s hospitals has now seen “block resignations” by key departmental directors who claim structural problems are now so extreme that their jobs have been rendered “completely impossible”.
Daily paper Público reports today that specialists working in Faro, Portimão and Lagos hospitals – as well as the health centres of Loulé, Albufeira and Vila do Bispo – are at their wits’ end with the hospital’s board under Joaquim Ramalho which took over nine months ago and has been failing to make necessary changes ever since.
Their letter – which stands as a “diagnosis” of all that is lacking in the (CHA) hospital centre, says Público – claims the quantity and quality of assistance has been “conditioned” to the point that standards are at their “worst for the last few years”.
The resigning health chiefs claim there is a lack of any kind of effective strategy and “important measures” which could have lead to all kinds of improvements have simply not been forthcoming.
But there is a chink of light: clinical deputy director Ana Lopes, surgical boss João Ildefonso, and directors Ulisses Brito, Pedro Leão and Carlos Godinho (A&E), have simply stressed their “intention to resign”, explains Público – pledging to secure the function of their services while dialogue remains open with health administrative board ARS Algarve.
And the government has only just announced the investment of €19 million in the region, over the next two years – €11.2 of which should be coming “already next year”.
The paper suggests the issue is centred more on hospital directors’ belief that Ramalho’s administration is just not fronting up sufficiently to ARS Algarve, which they consider “has been co-responsible for the progressive degradation of public health services over the last few years, particularly when it comes to hospital care”.
Reaction to the letter this close to Christmas has been muted.
Público writes that a source from the ministry of health referred the matter to ARS Algarve, which in turn “alleged that it did not know” about it.
