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Health systems in transition
Portugal
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and social sectors. HRA also conducts enquiries and issues recommendations
to the Ministry of Health. In 2013, following an inquiry conducted by the
HRA, which found that several NHS hospitals were allowing the provision of
private medical services in their facilities, the regulator called on the Ministry
of Health to prevent provision of private medical services within public funded
NHS hospitals (ERS, 2013b). It was determined that private services performed
in NHS hospitals did not follow uniform procedures in aspects that included the
use of facilities and equipment, billing of services and fees. Moreover, private
provision in public hospitals was characterized by lack of transparency in the
relationship between patients and providers and that could result in longer
waiting times among NHS users, as well as difficulties in the determination of
medical liability (ERS, 2013b).
Quality
The main responsibility for regulation of policy objectives and national quality
standards lies at the central level with the DGH. Under this body, a functionally
separate institute for quality was created in 1999. Its scope covered the
development of policies, strategies and procedures that support professionals
and provider organizations in the continuous improvement of quality for the
delivery of health care.
In May 2015, the Ministry of Health published the new National Strategy
for Quality in Health 2015–2020, in line with the EU Health Programme
2014–2020. The strategy defines the following priorities:
•
focusing on local interventions, services, providers and institutions
•
improving organizational and clinical practice quality
•
increasing the adoption of practice guidelines in clinical practice
•
strengthening patient safety
•
strengthening clinical research
•
continuous monitoring of quality and safety
•
disseminating of comparable performance data
•
improving quality and accreditation of health care providers
•
providing transparent information to citizens and citizens’ empowerment.
The DGH also created a voluntary National Accreditation Programme for
Quality in Health (2009).