The Portuguese health system is characterized by three coexisting systems: the National Health Service (NHS), special social health insurance schemes for certain professions (health subsystems) and voluntary private health insurance.
Health facilities have been modernized with the years, especially in through new equipment and services humanization. They can be divided into three types:
- HOSPITALS - located in major cities and towns with largest Portuguese population, ensuring top health care, like surgeries, consultations and several specialties;
- HEALTH CENTERS AND FHU (FAMILY HEALTH UNITS) - ensure some specialties consultations to their patients, consultations with the family physician, nursing treatments and small surgeries;
- MEDICAL CENTERS - located mainly in small localities, ensuring consultations with the family physician and nursing treatments of primary grade.
Apart from the public sector, there are also private hospitals and clinics.
Portugal has a medical emergency number - 112.
Beyond the line of medical emergency, users still have a Health Phone line, open 24 hours a day (HEALTH 24) - 808 24 24 24, where users can ask questions or ask for help. The purpose of this line is to connect the Portuguese people to health and reduce unnecessary emergency service demand.
SOME HOSPITALS IN PORTO
- Centro Hospitalar of Porto (Hospital de Santo António, Hospital Maria Pia, Maternidade Júlio Dinis)
- Hospital Pedro Hispano - Matosinhos
- Hospital de S. João - Porto
- Instituto Português de Oncologia (Portuguese Institute of Oncology) - regional branches at Lisbon, Porto and Coimbra
- Hospital of Misericórdia of Paredes (CESPU) – Paredes, Sousa Valey
- Hospital Padre Américo – Penafiel, Vale do Sousa
- Centro Hospitalar Médio Ave – V. N. Famalicão
- Centro Hospitalar of Alto Ave – Fafe and Guimarães