Portugal’s health minister resigned after the death of a pregnant tourist who had been transferred from a maternity ward with no available beds. The 34-year-old Indian woman reportedly died from a cardiac arrest she suffered while being transferred from hospital to hospital in Lisbon. The tragedy follows a series of cases of medical malpractice due to staff shortages in Portugal’s maternity wards.
According to Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa, the woman’s death was the “last straw” that led to the resignation of doctor and minister Marta Temido, who has headed the health ministry since 2018 and is known in the country as the number one anti-Covid policy as well for the successful implementation of the vaccination campaign. The Lisbon government limited itself to clarifying in a note that Dr. Temido “realized that the conditions for staying in office no longer existed”.
Local media reported that the pregnant tourist died while being transferred from Lisbon’s Santa Maria Hospital – the largest in Portugal – because her neonatal unit was full. The baby was born after an emergency c-section and is doing well. An investigation was launched into the woman’s death.
Other similar cases have emerged across Portugal in recent months, including the deaths of two children whose mothers were transferred between different hospitals and suffered long delays in receiving medical care. The shortage of medical staff in Portugal, particularly in the gynecology and obstetrics sectors, has prompted the government to consider hiring professionals from abroad, the BBC reports.
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Speaking to local media, the president of the Portuguese Medical Association, Miguel Guimaraes, said former minister Temido resigned because he had no way of solving the current crisis. However, Gustavo Tato Borges, president of the Portuguese Public Health Association, said he did not expect her resignation and was “surprised” that the minister had resigned while there were “acute problems” in the health sector.