After a home in Reguengos de Monsaraz was the target of an outbreak of COVID-19, causing the death of 18 people, including 16 elderly people, a report by the Portuguese Medical Association revealed the poor health and safety conditions that the professionals who provided help to users found on the premises.
Among elderly people with only diapers, rooms with garbage and traces of dry urine, users with positive tests for COVID-19 in the same spaces with others still awaiting results, there were several failures pointed out to the functioning of the home in the report. Now, the same document reveals that doctors who denounced the poor condition of the facilities are said to have been threatened with disciplinary proceedings, writes the newspaper “Express”.
According to these news, José Robalo, director of the Regional Health Administration of Alentejo, summoned several doctors. “At the meeting, doctors are informed by Dr. Robalo that they must maintain the provision of care at home because, otherwise, they would incur disciplinary proceedings,” writes the same publication, citing the report to which he had access.
It should be recalled that 106 people were infected at home, between 80 users and 26 employees. Questioned by “Expresso”, José Robalo confirmed the reference to disciplinary proceedings, but refuses that they were connected with the lack of conditions, but with the provision of services. “Yes, I raised the possibility of disciplinary proceedings [nesse encontro] (…) If they refuse to treat a patient from the National Health Service, in this context, a disciplinary process can be raised. There can be no refusal ”, said the director of the Regional Health Administration of Alentejo.
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