Portugal's INEM faces staffing shortages and reform concerns

Medical and pre‑hospital emergency unions in Portugal have warned that the National Institute of Medical Emergency (INEM) is deteriorating due to prolonged negotiations with the Ministry of Health, lack of resources and proposed reforms. The Sindicato dos Médicos do Norte highlighted that INEM operates with only about 22 doctors against a reported need for roughly 70, relies on around a hundred vehicles and 164 contract doctors, and fears a shift toward privatized training that could lower technical standards. The Sindicato dos Técnicos de Emergência Pré‑Hospitalar (STEPH) submitted a manifesto to the President urging caution and transparency over recent changes that reduce the number of ambulance units, replace highly trained technicians with less‑trained staff, and reassign medical helicopters away from interior regions. Both unions call for a specific legal framework for pre‑hospital emergency medicine, fair collective bargaining, and protection of current response capacities.

The groups argue that the reforms risk longer response times, diminished emergency coverage in rural areas and a loss of specialised training, urging the government to reconsider the restructuring of the Integrated Emergency Medical System (SIEM).