Shocking new statistics have revealed that Albufeira Health Centre has only two family doctors for every 3,000 patients. In addition, another 4,000 patients are waiting for treatment from a family doctor. Clinic Director, Margarida Feteira, revealed the numbers during a visit from President Sampaio last week. The explanation for the excessive number of users is the area’s popularity: “Albufeira is a very attractive area and because, by law, each person can enrol at the health centre whenever they want, irrespective of their residential area, there are no limits on demand.”
There are 3,000 registered patients for the entire health team, meaning each doctor has, on average, 1,500 patients – in fact, the entire team consists of two doctors, a nurse and an administrative official. Sampaio expressed his concern about the ratio, but Margarida Feteiro described it as a situation “they were well accustomed to”. Albufeira’s Health Centre contains permanent health assistance (SAP), an ambulance service, a vaccination service and other clinics. Sampaio’s visit coincided with a period of relative calm at the centre, in sharp contrast to the situation this past summer, when there was an increase in admissions of almost 80 per cent during the heatwaves.
