Sixty-five nurses from the Intensive Care Medicine Service at Dr. Nélio Mendonça Hospital submitted a formal request for exemption from responsibility to the President of the SESARAM, EPERAM Board of Directors today. They said the department is facing severe staffing shortages, excessive overtime, and too few qualified professionals. In their view, conditions have gone beyond acceptable limits and now represent a serious crisis. The nurses warned that the situation threatens patient safety, the quality of health care, and the health and dignity of professionals. Their document called for an assessment of service operating conditions and nursing staffing levels, less dependence on overtime, stronger core staffing, strict rest periods between shifts, and intervention by the Order of Nurses. They also argued that overtime has shifted from an exceptional measure to a structural practice, affecting personal lives, increasing exhaustion, and raising the risk of clinical errors. Juntos Pelo Povo (JPP) described the nurses’ position as legitimate, while JPP Secretary General Élvio Sousa accused the Regional Government and Miguel Albuquerque of failing to manage the regional health service and neglecting investment in human resources.
