Portugal’s Minister of Health, Marta Temido, submitted her resignation this Tuesday morning after months of growing pressure. The push from doctors’ unions finally produced a response, following numerous meetings and a perceived failure to address their core demands. Chronic staffing shortages in emergency departments affected dozens of hospitals, with particular concern for gynecological services. In some cases, patients were referred to other facilities due to insufficient personnel. A pregnant woman died last week after arriving at a hospital that was not adequately equipped, in Lisbon. Earlier, another pregnant woman lost her baby after arriving at a closed emergency department.
The conflict between Temido and the unions intensified late last year when hospitals faced renewed strain as the pandemic receded from the peak. Frontline healthcare workers, who had been battling COVID-19 and accumulating hundreds of overtime hours, moved toward a point where the working reality felt unsustainable. The national administration tried to address doctors’ requests by increasing overtime pay and backing a new charter for the National Health Service (SNS). The plan aimed to improve hospital coordination and grant more autonomy to centers to recruit and retain staff.
Nevertheless, the government measures granted did not prove enough to keep Temido in office. Prime Minister António Costa has yet to name a successor, and indications suggest the transition will not be rapid. In his morning remarks, the prime minister acknowledged the work of the General Directorate of Health, which has led the health system since 2018, especially through the demanding period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Temido rose to prominence as one of the most visible leaders in Costa’s government, a figure once mentioned in political chatter as a possible prime ministerial candidate, despite her year-long affiliation with the Socialist Party.
Opposition and union criticism
Representatives from both doctors’ unions and the Physicians and Nurses Association responded positively to Temido’s resignation, which many see as a reflection of the unresolved crisis in Portugal’s healthcare system. “There are real shortages everywhere,” stated Jorge Roque da Cunha, president of the Association of Independent Doctors, in an interview with CNN Portugal. He added that the health system has been out of step with the needs on the ground. Miguel Guimarães, head of the Order of Physicians, echoed that sentiment, stressing that the SNS has not yet found lasting solutions to the serious problems facing the service today.
The opposition also seized the moment to criticize the Costa government, which holds a strong parliamentary majority following January elections. Miguel Pinto Luz, vice-president of the main conservative PSD party, said the resignation underscored a broader failure in the administration’s health policy, marked by arrogance and irresponsibility. He argued that a tragedy might have been avoided with swifter corrective measures and better crisis management within the SNS.