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Ana Paula Martins admits a communication failure in the case of a child sent via the SNS24 line to a closed emergency and guarantees that an internal audit is being carried out on patients who were sent to hospitals with closed emergencies. The case was initially advanced by SIC.
The Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, asked, this Thursday, for an internal audit of the case of a child who was referred by an SNS24 line operator to a
The ruler admitted the existence of a communication failure between the line and the hospitals.
“There appears to have been a communication failure between the hospital and the line. Whoever is on the line assisting and triaging has to know that that hospital is no longer able to receive patients. It is very important that this communication mechanism does not fail,” he said Ana Paula Martins.
SNS 24 line sent the child to an emergency room that was closed
Vanda Almeida lives in Ameal, Torres Vedras. On Monday, the 5-year-old son was observed in the primary care unit: Tiago had had a fever for three days and his temperature didn’t go down.
On Christmas Day, the symptoms worsened, the boy had ear and throat pain. The mother called the SNS 24 line and, an hour and a half after calling, she was finally answered by a healthcare professional. After explaining what was happening, he received the message to take your child to the pediatric emergency department at Torres Vedras Hospitalwhich Vanda had seen in who were closed.
From the line insisted that pediatric emergencies were open and to take the son as soon as possible to be observed. Vanda Almeida then decided to seek assistance at another hospital, the closest being Caldas da Rainha, the 40 kilometers from home.
When the child was finally observed, the pediatrician confirmed that the pain was caused by otitis and a sore throat.
Five hours of anguish for the mother and suffering for the child when the diagnosis could have been made more quickly, had it not been for wrong information from Line SNS 24.
Vanda Almeida confirms that the son was not the only one to be mistakenly referenced. The Torres Vedras hospital takes over. SIC contacted the Shared Services of the Ministry of Health, responsible for the SUS portal page. To date, he has not received any response.
