The Regional Secretary for Health announced today at the Legislative Assembly in Horta that the Regional Health Service will be reinforced with more than 579 professionals from different areas in 2020. 

Teresa Machado Luciano stated that “179 professionals were already hired this year for the Regional Health Service”, adding that “more than 400 professionals from different areas will be hired, including doctors, nurses, diagnostic and therapeutic technicians, technical assistants, psychologists, senior technicians and operational assistants.”

The government official also stressed that the General Practice and Family Medicine doctors completed their specialisation in April, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that “the recruitment process to hire these professionals is already under way.” 

As for the hiring of doctors who completed their training in hospital specialties, she stated that “the recruitment procedures have been suspended, but are already in their final phase.” 

With regard to the wage rises for nurses and diagnostic and therapeutic technicians, the Secretary for Health also reiterated that the process should be completed by August, recalling that “the quota of specialist nurses was increased this year in 59 more vacancies." 

Teresa Machado Luciano also stated that the plan for the movement of health professionals to islands without hospital was changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, the provision of health care was guaranteed to Azorean patients, through “telemedicine in various specialties, namely in Cardiology.” 

In this context, she pointed out the island of Pico as an example, seeing that, “this month alone, doctors from more than five specialties have already carried out consultations on that island, with special emphasis on new specialties, such as Gynaecology, General Surgery and Orthopaedics.”