The National Health Council (CNS), which has assessed the impact of COVID-19 in Portugal, argues that the National Health Service needs to rethink, reform public health and strengthen protection for people at risk.
“Rethinking and strengthening the National Health Service (SNS) in terms of human resources (particularly doctors and nurses), organizational and financial, with the aim of ensuring the restoration of care and ensuring response to public health emergencies, and minimizing their impact on the provision of care and preventive activities” is one of the recommendations contained in the report “Covid-19 Pandemic: Challenges to the Health of the Portuguese” released today.
This independent and advisory body of government also advises that: a ‘Deep reform’ of public health servicesreviewing issues such as autonomy, fees and resources, at its various levels – central, regional and local.
According to the board chaired by Henrique Barros, this reform should ensure the multi-disciplinarity of teams, ensure the specialized resources necessary for public health functions, and allocate Special attention to health crises In particular, infectious emergencies.
In its recommendations, which resulted from “challenges encountered” during the pandemic and aimed at contributing to recovery and strengthening the response to improve the health of the population, the CNS also calls for a “transparent, comprehensive and systematic” analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on the health system, taking into account Institutional performance and results of implemented policies and procedures.
“This analysis is expected to make a critical contribution to a plan that ensures the normality of care and sustainability of the SNS and the rest of the health system in the face of future public health emergencies,” the organization advocates.
Central nervous system evaluation also found We need to promote social policies that have a direct and indirect impact on the health and well-being of the most disadvantaged familiesand advocating for the urgent implementation of specific measures to restore learning and enhance children’s well-being, with particular attention to students hardest hit by the pandemic and those experiencing greater school difficulties.
CNS also adds that health data access measures must, from now on, be implemented across the entire system, with immaterial and accessible information, with full respect for quality, security and confidentiality, which will contribute to better management, more public knowledge and stimulate the production of scientific evidence and decisions enlightened.
Other recommendations include adopting measures that allow: ‘more transparent decision’Ensure access to technical opinions from public bodies, improve public understanding of the rationale and criteria used in decision-making, and contribute to a more informed and participatory citizenship.
According to this advisory body, it is also necessary Determine priority areas For more immediate action, in the case of mental health, population screening and health promotion programmes, as well as increased coordination between the various public and private agents in the health sector.
The Central Nervous System found that, in the Autumn Winter 2020-2021 Health Plan, published by the Directorate General of Health in September 2020, “no intervention other than that of the public sector in responding to the epidemic and other challenges was foreseen.” They’ll feel it” in the following months.
As far as it is possible to predict the way the relationship between covid-19 and the population will evolve, central nervous system experts assert that they can “imagine it” The virus will remain endemic, with potential for outbreaks or epidemics, and is more likely to be recurrent in cold periods“.
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