With serious road accidents in Portugal a constant reality, INEM has gone public over its chronic shortage of psychologists, trained to provide support in worst case scenarios. The shortage is worst in the Algarve, a source told Correio da Manhã, where just one part-timer covers “around half a million people”, but the problem persists throughout the country, with just seven full-time psychologists available when 24 should be on the payroll.
“The only position where a psychologist is assured round the clock is at CODU (the centre of orientation for urgent patients)” in Lisbon, INEM workers representative Carla Cristino told CM. “Outside of this, psychologists are lacking everywhere”.
