Portugal's Hospital de Faro ordered to overhaul emergency care after death and denied pregnant patient

Portugal's health regulator (ERS) ordered the Algarve health authority (ULS) to adopt measures guaranteeing faster, higher‑quality emergency care after a patient died following a four‑hour wait in the Hospital de Faro’s emergency department. The deceased, a road‑accident victim with pre‑existing liver cirrhosis, was not seen by a doctor for four hours, developed internal bleeding and died despite surgery. The regulator cited staffing constraints and required the hospital to activate trauma pathways and enforce Manchester triage targets.

Separately, the Health Minister announced that the Executive Board of the National Health Service has requested an explanation from the same hospital regarding a 37‑year‑old woman in her 40th week of pregnancy who was turned away because she had not previously called the SNS 24 line. The woman was forced to travel about 70 km to Portimão for delivery despite INEM’s emergency assistance. The minister stressed that no pregnant woman may be left without care and that a full report will be obtained.