The president of the União das Misericórdias Portuguesas (UMP) defended a change in the financing model of the social sector and greater attention to the situation of the elderly, particularly affected by the pandemic.
“Obviously, one of the things that has to change is the financing model”, says Manuel Lemos in the joint weekly interview Renascença/Ecclesia, issued and published every Sunday.
The official admits that, at the moment, the State has fewer resources to support people, but stresses that “in developed societies, the social sector cannot be a by-product”.
Quoting former Prime Minister António Guterres, the UMP president says that “the State should pay at least 50% of the cost of the response and, hopefully, 60%.
“Currently, we are at 37,38%. And we are at 2018 values, because in 2020 we still don't have ready accounts. Therefore, it goes to 34, 35%, because of the costs of Personal Protective Equipment, etc.”, he needs.
Manuel Lemos also refers that vaccination in homes “is a priority” and that the elderly “must be better treated, the continuous care network cannot be as it is”.
For the president of the UMP, during the pandemic, the “lack of articulation between the State bodies, namely between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Social Security” became visible.
As the most difficult moments of 2020, the respondent recalls "the first cases" of Covid-19, because no one was prepared to "deal with them", as well as the idea that was passed on to the public opinion that social sector institutions did not they would have the capacity to face the pandemic, so their management in this crisis “would fall to the State”.
“The culture of care is an absolute value, which in Portugal – not only through the Misericórdias, but also through other organizations – we have been developing. And this is perhaps what explains the relative success in terms of the care we have been providing”, he observes, highlighting a lower mortality rate in the Homes, compared to other European countries.
Manuel Lemos praises the role of workers, who he considers “heroes in this process”, admitting that they are “very underpaid”.
“The minimum wage, in many institutions, is the average wage: this is unacceptable”, he points out, stressing the need to change the financing system, in order to increase remuneration.
“How much does it cost to take care of an elderly person today? And how much does it cost to take care of you desirably? The lion's share of this work has to be to pay our employees”, he asks.
The UMP president, who has been in office for 13 years, also says that this term is "certainly the last".
“I am very proud and honored to have been there these years and to carry the mandate to the end. I think there is a time for everything”, he explains.
Henrique Cunha (Renaissance) and Octávio Carmo (Ecclesia)
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