Instituto Nacional de Emergência Médica (INEM)

The National Institute of Medical Emergency (INEM) is a branch of the Ministry of Health responsible for defining, organising, coordinating, participating in and evaluating the activities and functions of the Integrated Medical Emergency System (SIEM) in mainland Portugal, in order to guarantee trauma victims or victims of sudden illness the prompt and correct provision of emergency health care.

INEM´s mission is to ensure the provision of emergency medical care in the prehospital scene, aiming to be an innovative, sustainable, motivating and reference organization in the medical emergency set.

INEM’s main activities consists of on-the-scene emergency care, assisted transport of victims to an appropriate hospital and coordination between different hospitals and other facilities.

INEM is also responsible for the triage & dispatch centres, called the CODU (Urgent Patients Coordination Centre), that respond to emergency calls made through the European emergency number –112.

In the national and international context, INEM’s response requires the ability to deploy to field of operations, in the shortest possible time, emergency medical teams, equipment and material for clinical consumption, which aim to allow the stabilization of the critical patient and their transport to the appropriate health units in disaster situations.

INEM concluded on March 21, 2019 the certification process for its medical and professional emergency module – PT EMT with the World Health Organization (WHO), aiming to provide a quick and effective response to serious accident or disaster situations in a national or international context. PT EMT has the capacity to respond to a high number of victims, ensuring triage, initial stabilization, referral to appropriate health units and the definitive treatment of some less serious medical and traumatic situations, ensuring compliance with the WHO standards.