2023-05-07 14:00:05
In Portugal, workers can now sign a medical certificate without having to consult a professional or a health centre.
As of this Monday (1st), the Portuguese can obtain sick leave up to twice a year and for a maximum of three days each through the National Health Service (SNS) 24.
The measure aims to help relieve the country’s national health service, according to the government.
The self-declared certificate does not involve costs for the state or the employer and can be requested through the personal area on the SNS 24 website.
The novelty is part of a series of measures approved in February and which came into force this Monday (1st), Labor Day, within the scope of the “Decent Work Agenda”.
This set of new measures includes the increase in paternity leave and the expansion of teleworking, as well as a pilot project to test the four-day week, which is already a reality in other countries.
Difference between medical certificate and statement
The medical certificate is a document issued and signed by the health professional who carried out the consultation, a reality that is already different in Portugal, since the patient himself can sign it.
This document contains the recommendation for temporary removal of the patient, within a period defined by the physician, proving the need for the employee to be absent from work.
When the doctor or dentist issues a certificate accrediting or removing the patient from work, it means that there is incapacity to carry out the work, even if temporarily.
Meanwhile, the declaration of attendance is a document that indicates that a person appeared at a certain place, at a certain time or during a certain period of time.
It is used for justify the absence employee’s temporary absence from their face-to-face activities at their workplace.
It contains the arrival and departure times of the patient attended and the reason for going to the location.
The statement only proves that the person attended the consultation, but there is no incapacity to carry out their work activities.
With information from Forbes
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