Portugal is facing an uncertain future after the country’s healthcare system collapsed in 2015, leaving more than 2 million people without health care.

The country has yet to be able to provide adequate care for its poorest residents, with more than 70 per cent of the country still suffering from chronic conditions. 

However, with the country on a mission to transform the healthcare system, a Portuguese NGO called Bracieros Program in Lisbon is planning to create a program that will provide doctors and nurses with specialised training in treating people with mental illness.

The project aims to equip doctors and health care workers with skills to treat mental illnesses and other medical problems, which will help them to treat more than 60,000 patients a year.

Dr Rui Lobo, a social work professor at the University of Porto, told RTE the program will be a first in Portugal.

“We have to be really realistic.

We are still very poor in Portugal, and we are trying to make sure that we can create a future, a future where the poor will have access to health care,” he said.”

Our project aims at helping doctors and nursing staff, but also to help people who are sick, who are vulnerable, who have mental health problems, or who have other conditions that make them vulnerable.”

It is a social service, a healthcare service, and it is something that we need to think about.

“Lobo said the Braceros Program is also working with local doctors, who can work with the doctors to identify and treat the mental health needs of people who have been left out of the care system.”

In Portugal, the system is very complicated and is very expensive, but we are working with doctors to make it more affordable and to improve it,” he explained.”

The idea is to help them understand that they are not alone, that they have a partner who can help them.

“This partnership, this project, is a very important step for us, because this is something we can do for a very long time.” 

Dr Lobo said he is optimistic the project will create more opportunities for the Portuguese healthcare system.

The program aims to train nurses and doctors in the areas of mental health, health information technology, mental health education, psychosocial support and substance abuse. 

The project, which is part of a larger programme called the Portuguese Health Service, is one of many that has been launched since 2015 to help tackle the countrys problems with the healthcare delivery system.

Dr Loro said that, despite the country having a population of more than 1.8 million, the population is still too low to meet the needs of all the people.

“Many people who come to Portugal for medical treatment or are coming to Portugal to receive help in getting health care, they are really not provided with adequate healthcare,” he added. 

“It means they have to wait, they can’t get the treatment that they need, and they are still living in poverty.” 

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