Specialist nurses will look after low-risk pregnancies at health centres in a new pilot scheme
Nurses who specialise in maternal and obstetric health will be able to look after women with low-risk pregnancies at health centres, under a pilot scheme set out in a government order published in the Diário da República, the official gazette, on 28 October. The government says it is a response to the growing shortage of family doctors.
The nurses will be able to monitor the pregnancy, order tests and screening, and give supplements and vaccines under the usual clinical rules. The first check-up should take place as early as possible, ideally by nine weeks and six days of pregnancy. If no doctor's appointment is available by then, a specialist nurse should do it.
The risk of each pregnancy will be reviewed throughout. If anything changes for the mother or the baby, the woman leaves the scheme and is referred to a doctor or hospital. The care is linked to the hospital obstetrics department of each local health unit (ULS, the body that runs the hospitals and health centres in an area).
A woman must be told about the scheme and agree to join it, and can ask to leave at any time. Her records will be available on the SNS 24 (national health service) app and website. The health service has 90 days to publish the technical rules, and the scheme will be reviewed after 12 months.
