“We are being more reactive than proactive and it is important to have an effective planning for the moment when, predictably, we will have our health services under more pressure, as is the case in winter. If we add this increased demand for flu to the problems related to the pandemic, we certainly have some difficulty in this matter. It is important to provide the country with this response capacity,” he said.


In an interview with Lusa, the leader of the ANMSP said that “the explanations are not easy to find” for the current situation of the health crisis in the country, reflected in the increase in the number of deaths, cases and hospital admissions in the last weeks. However, he did not fail to list several factors that combined for the current picture of the pandemic.


“Since the message that was passed on to people, which led them to adopt higher risk behaviours, the lack of preparation, that is, to anticipate the increase in the number of cases and some delay in carrying out the various tasks, such as epidemiological surveys or laboratory diagnosis. This ended up leading to the emergence of a relevant number of new cases”, he explained.


Asked about the definition of the evolution of the Portuguese reality in the fight against SARS-CoV-2, Ricardo Mexia stressed that the answer necessarily involves the allocation of timely and adequate resources, as well as compliance with the rules for the prevention of contagion, namely, respiratory etiquette, social distance and the use of a protective mask.


“In Lisbon and Vale do Tejo, in particular, it depends on our ability to quickly carry out inquiries, isolate patients and quarantine contacts. It certainly depends on the resources that are allocated and on our speed to carry out these tasks”, he noted, adding: “In relation to the dissemination to the rest of the country, it is the question of mobility and the adoption of measures that we all already know”.


On the other hand, the president of the ANMSP put into perspective the criticisms made over the past few days by politicians and medical and scientific officials about the recent management of the pandemic.


“Each has its role: technicians are responsible for assessing the situation and providing decision-makers with information so that they can decide, and decision-makers must give technicians the necessary resources. If each fulfils its role, we are well on our way to overcome the situation. If there is, in fact, a difficulty in each one assuming what is theirs, with politicians trying to make a technical speech and technicians trying to justify political options, we probably have more difficulty”, he said.