@article{Lemos_Guedes_Mourão_Lima_Veiga_Chedas_Branca_Abrunhosa_Cadilha_Almeida_2018, place={Lisbon, Portugal}, title={2017 Census: are there enough anaesthesiologists in Portugal?}, volume={31}, url={https://actamedicaportuguesa.com/revista/index.php/amp/article/view/10094}, DOI={10.20344/amp.10094}, abstractNote={<p><strong>Introduction:</strong> The objective of this study is to identify the number of anaesthesiologists working in Portugal and to monitor the national activity of this medical specialty by comparing it with a similar Census performed in 2014.<br /><strong>Material and Methods:</strong> Observational cross-sectional study. Data related to the month of May 2017 was collected from Anaesthesiology departments of 53 Portuguese public institutions from a total of 86 hospitals.<br /><strong>Results:</strong> The Census registered 615 127 surgical procedures (3.4% more than in 2013), 84.1% of which on a non-emergent basis, and 49.6% day case surgery (6.1% more than in 2013). Moreover, 89 608 procedures were performed outside the operating rooms (19.0% less than in 2013), 282 944 were anaesthetic clinics (1.3% more than in 2013) and 112 183 were chronic pain evaluations (13.1% more than in 2013). In addition, 51 380 labour analgesia were performed for delivery (14.3% more than in 2013) corresponding to 70.5% of all deliveries occurring in the Obstetric department of Portuguese public hospitals in 2016 (5% more than in 2013). A total of 1280 Anaesthesiologists were identified (2.1% more than in May 2014), corresponding to a ratio of 12.4 per 100 000 inhabitants (it was 12.0 in May 2014). Together with the 262 anaesthesiologists that work exclusively in the private system, we found a total sum of 1542 anaesthesiologists indicating a ratio of 15.1 per 100 000 inhabitants (it was 13.9 in 2014).<br /><strong>Discussion:</strong> We predict that the identified deficit of 541 anaesthesiologists in the Portuguese National Health Service should be<br />reduced by two thirds until 2023. The reduction of the shortage of anaesthesiologists will allow an increase in human resource capacity in Anaesthesiology.<br /><strong>Conclusion:</strong> Even though there was a slight increase in the ratio of Anaesthesiologists per inhabitant in 2017 compared to 2014, Portugal maintains a shortage of Anaesthesiologists.</p>}, number={5}, journal={Acta Médica Portuguesa}, author={Lemos, Paulo and Guedes, Alexandra and Mourão, Joana and Lima, Joaquim Figueiredo and Veiga, José and Chedas, Manuel and Branca, Pedro and Abrunhosa, Rosário and Cadilha, Susana and Almeida, Valentina}, year={2018}, month={May}, pages={254–264} }