Order finds evidence of disciplinary offenses in the case of surgeons at the Faro hospital
The Order of Doctors (OM) told Lusa this Wednesday that there were signs of disciplinary offenses in the conduct of two doctors at the Faro hospital, in the context of the case of alleged malpractices in the Surgery service of that unit.
Questioned by Lusa about the development of the process, triggered in April 2023 with a complaint from a doctor at the Centro Hospitalar Universitário do Algarve (CHUA), a source from the Southern Regional Disciplinary Council of OM states that disciplinary proceedings were initiated against two doctors.
“This process was investigated and after evaluating the elements, it was considered that there were signs of various disciplinary offenses, which is why charges were filed against those involved, who presented their defense”, reads a note sent to Lusa by that body.
The process is taking place in its “normal process”, with no final decision yet, added the same source.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the Local Health Unit (ULS) of the Algarve stated that the commissions that conducted the investigations – the independent commission of experts from the OM and the management of the College of Surgery specialty – both concluded that there was “no of the alleged errors.”
The clinical investigations were initiated following a complaint by Diana Pereira, in April 2023, that there had been negligence and violation of the ‘leges artis’ in a group of patients treated in the General Surgery service of the Faro unit, between January and March of the year. past.
The ULS also stated that it “maintains all confidence” in the surgeons targeted in the complaint, stressing that it is not aware of “any condemnatory decision, whether disciplinary or otherwise”.
On Monday, a source from the General Inspectorate of Health Activities (IGAS) had told Lusa that signs of disciplinary responsibility were detected in some of the cases reported for alleged malpractice in the Surgery service at that hospital.
“The investigation process has been completed […]with signs of disciplinary responsibility having been found in some cases of all the participants, from which facts emerge that support the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against some of the professionals involved in the medical care in question”, reads the note sent to Lusa by IGAS.
Stressing that the presumption of innocence of those targeted must prevail, ULS do Algarve stated that it reserves “the right to use all legal mechanisms so that, at the right time, the good name, reputation and credit of this entity”, extracting “the consequences for those who may have made unfounded accusations”.
Diana Pereira reported several cases of alleged “error/negligence” in Surgery at the Faro hospital, which occurred between January and March 2023, and, according to the doctor, of the 11 cases reported, three patients died, two were hospitalized at the time in intermediate care and the remainder suffered bodily injuries associated with the alleged medical errors.
Following the complaints, in June last year, the Medical Association (OM) preventively suspended two surgeons from the unit for six months, a measure made public through a notice from the Disciplinary Council of the Southern Region of the OM, and which covered the director from the service and another surgeon from the Algarve hospital.
These complaints also led the Public Prosecutor’s Office to open an investigation.
