The Association of Prehospital Emergency Technicians (ANTEPH) criticized this Thursday the integration of nurses in the Urgent Patient Guidance Centers (CODU), considering that they are necessary in hospitals, are more expensive and do not have specific training in CODU.
In statements to Lusa, the president of the association, Luís Canária, stated that he did not understand the reasons for not offering better conditions to INEM technicians, who have been on overtime strike since October 30, choosing to place nurses in the CODU. Luis Canária criticized the decision for “overloading nurses, who are necessary in hospitals and other places.”
In his opinion, this measure will not improve quality, being a complete fallacy: “We need people in the right places and the Prehospital Emergency Technicians are the main people responsible for helping on the street, trained in a variety of things that no doctor or nurse can learn, such as rescue operations, assistance or emergency driving,” he stated.
The INEM announced this Wednesday contingency measures to optimize the operation of the urgent patient orientation centers (CODU), such as the creation of emergency triage for calls with a wait of three or more minutes, as part of a strategy to improve response to delays in answering calls at the CODU that allegedly caused the death of at least six people.
The INEM also announced, in the short term, the integration of nurses into the CODU to perform certain functions and review procedures related to the transfer of data from emergency teams in the field.
Luís Canária said that the strike aggravated and exposed the lack of professionals in the CODU because what happened in the past was that, if there was a lack of ambulances and professionals in the INEM ambulances, the The problem tried to be camouflaged with the help of firefighters and the Red Cross.
“Our vision has always been to regionalize and decentralize the call immediately: if there is no response in the first minute or second, that call is immediately forwarded to the civil protection centers of that district or region, or even to the body itself. of firefighters. where that call is being made so that, although there is not triage as efficient as if it were done by a technician, they can respond to a situation,” he argued.
According to Luís Canária, what is currently occurring is an overload in the centers, with difficulty in providing assistance, since although there are fire ambulances or medical vehicles from that hospital available, the call has taken 20, 30 or 50 minutes. , in some cases.
After a meeting with the Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, where a negotiation protocol was signed with the authority, the Union of Prehospital Emergency Technicians (STEPH) decided this Thursday afternoon to suspend the strike during overtime, to request a career review. and better salary conditions.
Source: Observadora
