INEM (Instituto Nacional de Emergência Médica) employees have been on strike since 6.11.2024 for better career and salary conditions, disrupting emergency services.
This has led to delays in emergency responses and caused some citizens to directly contact or visit fire stations when unable to reach INEM’s emergency call centre (CODU). Firefighters have been transporting patients without coordination from INEM. Four deaths have been linked to chronic emergency response delays.
INEM has announced a set of contingency measures to optimise the functioning of the urgent patient guidance centres (CODU). These measures include creating automatic triage for emergency calls left on hold for more than three minutes. In addition, INEM will add nurses to the CODU for specific tasks and review data-sharing procedures from emergency teams in the field.
INEM advises the public to keep calls connected until answered and only to use the European emergency number 112 for serious situations. Non-urgent calls comprise 18% of CODU’s total calls, exacerbating delays in medical emergencies.