ANTEM criticizes INEM report over ambulance inoperability

The National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (ANTEM) has criticized a recent report from the Emergency Medical Orientation Center (CODU) regarding the performance of Portugal’s National Institute of Medical Emergency (INEM).

According to the report, the inoperability rate for Emergency Medical Ambulances (AEM) reached 38.82% last year. Additionally, the operational rates for Emergency and Resuscitation Medical Vehicles (VMER) and helicopters saw slight decreases. The data also highlights a significant shortage of human resources, particularly pre-hospital emergency technicians, resulting in over 364,000 overtime hours being worked by professionals last year.

ANTEM argues that while the report identifies operational pressures, it fails to quantify the clinical impact of these failures on patients. The association noted that the document does not specify how many critical patients were affected, how many occurrences lacked the necessary resources, or the extent of delays in care. ANTEM emphasized that high activity levels and operational numbers do not inherently prove clinical safety or efficacy, calling for more robust national indicators regarding survival rates, neurological outcomes, and mortality.