On 11 and 12 June, the Portuguese Physiotherapists’ Association held a series of institutional consultations in the Autonomous Region of Madeira on the new rules governing the provision of care in the field of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and their potential implications for patients’ access to physiotherapy.
As part of these efforts, the President of the Portuguese Physiotherapists’ Association, António Lopes, first met with the Regional Secretary for Health and Civil Protection, and subsequently with the parliamentary groups of the PS, JPP, CHEGA, IL and CDS, at the request of these parties, and presented the Order’s position on this matter.
During the meetings, the President of the Order expressed his disagreement with the content of the regional decree, as it represents a step backwards in relation to a national model which the Portuguese Physiotherapists’ Association considers outdated and ill-suited, both from the point of view of the legal framework and in terms of the quality and timeliness of the response to the population’s health problems, and to which it has been publicly expressing its opposition to national government bodies.
The amendments now proposed prioritise and are aimed at cost containment, without ensuring improved access for citizens to physiotherapy care, at the most appropriate and necessary times, in line with patients’ needs and the varying clinical pathways, where there is scientific evidence of the effectiveness of physiotherapists’ interventions.
They also restrict and hinder the involvement of physiotherapists through direct referrals from various medical specialities, leading to unjustified delays, duplication of appointments and an increase in the associated direct and indirect costs.
In this context, he provided his counterparts with supporting documentation to explain his position and to justify the changes he is proposing, with a view to improving the provision of healthcare in the field of physiotherapy.
It emphasised the status of Physiotherapy as an autonomous scientific discipline and of the profession of physiotherapist as an autonomous and self-regulated health profession, safeguarding the role of the various bodies of the profession, as an association governed by public law, with powers delegated by the state, in regulating the profession and defending the general interests of users of the services provided by its members, whilst safeguarding and ensuring respect for citizens’ right to health.
It also emphasised that physiotherapists may practise their profession legally and independently in various settings, notably in independent physiotherapy units under the clinical management of physiotherapists, which are duly registered, including in the Autonomous Region of Madeira. In this regard, the Association considers it essential that users of these units should also be able to benefit from the co-payment arrangements applicable to healthcare.
These meetings revealed a clear recognition on the part of local stakeholders of the importance of physiotherapists’ contribution to the Regional Health System, and a willingness to expand their role and integration not only in the field of rehabilitation, but also in primary healthcare and at various levels of prevention and health promotion.
The President and the Madeira Regional Board of the Portuguese Physiotherapists’ Association will monitor developments in the situation and have reaffirmed their willingness to work with the local authorities to improve the public’s access to physiotherapy care provided by physiotherapists.
The visit concluded with a meeting with physiotherapists from the Autonomous Region of Madeira, during which it was possible to listen to their concerns, identify challenges and present the work carried out by the Portuguese Physiotherapists’ Association.