Who doesn’t remember the story of “The Three Musketeers”, which turned out to be four, by Alexandre Dumas? Their adventures still fascinate children and adults alike, due to the intrepid way in which they fought alone against various dangers and solved the most difficult problems. This small team faced palace intrigues, acts of sabotage, the unjust decisions of absolute monarchical power or the religious and military hierarchies of the time, while defending the homeland and its people.
In November 2022, the Executive Director of the SNS took office. At the beginning of the year, it was the turn of his four-person team. This “administration of the largest national company, the SNS”, has an ambitious and complex mission. She is faithful trustee of the hope of millions of Portuguese in the sustainability of the SNS. It is in this team that the professionals, employees of this large organization, seek the vision, strategy, planning and actions that unblock paths that have been stuck for decades and solve problems accumulated and amplified by a pandemic.
It’s the emergency room where we go when we need it the most and also when we don’t need anything, but we run to it full of fear that hinders our thoughts. These are the maternity wards, which we need to reduce the insecurity of the vulnerability of birth, in a country where fewer and fewer people are born, almost nothing in some places and almost everything in others, in places where we want doctors to live even if the majority of we don’t want to live there.
It is access to mental health, for which we are collectively waking up, where until now it took more than four years to hire 40 psychologists for health centers and where hospitals hire little because they do not receive transfers from the state budget that consider and value the psychologists’ work. For these “small” and already historic problems, examples of so many others, we claim solutions now. It is legitimate, as it has been expected for a long, long time.
Therefore, the SNS Executive Board is required to deliver immediate results. That’s why we give you the means… oops! That’s right… it’s just that, in three months, the structure of the Executive Board, which foresees the staff that will have at its service and that will allow the execution of the activities that we aspire to… has not yet been approved. He still walks from Ministry to Ministry. Somewhere between Health and Finance. From legal analysis, to legal analysis, from financial analysis, to financial analysis. In negociation.
Today, more than three months later, this team remains the same. Without the minimum means to fulfill its mission. Trying to come up with solutions. Unfolding in dialogue and already some promising commitments. Changing what we all say needs to be changed as long as it doesn’t imply that we change ourselves. In provisional facilities, without organics, with very little means, we ask you to resolve the most complex issues that the SNS has ever faced for its sustainability. Little thing…
Well, it’s just that the story of “The Three Musketeers”, published by Dumas in 1844, was not real (although based on some real facts). States Four Musketeers of SNSwhich turns out to be Five, from 2023 and by unknown authors… it is real (although based on some stories that are more like fiction!).
The author writes according to the old spelling.