Local Health Unit of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro

"The Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro Hospital Centre (CHTMAD) includes the hospital units of Vila Real (headquarters), Chaves, Lamego, and a Palliative Care unit in Vila Pouca de Aguiar.

It is the largest hospital center in the country in terms of geographic area. It serves a directly referred population of approximately 300,000 inhabitants, corresponding to 22 municipalities in the districts of Vila Real, Chaves, and Lamego. If we consider the population served by ULS Nordeste, which refers patients to CHTMAD in certain specialties, nearly half a million inhabitants receive healthcare services (direct and indirect referrals, including 12 municipalities in the district of Bragança).

It has 3 emergency services (general in Vila Real, medical-surgical in Chaves, and basic in Lamego), 575 inpatient beds (excluding cribs), and 33 medical specialties.

Its mission is to provide healthcare tailored to the needs of the population, promoting longevity with quality of life through equitable, timely, rigorous, efficient, and humanized responses, while also fostering the training and professional fulfillment of its staff. The vision is to establish itself as a center of excellence in healthcare and as a driver of sustainable development with a strong sense of belonging among its patients and professionals.

The population served by CHTMAD is among the oldest in the country, geographically more dispersed, and with lower per capita income. Additionally, health literacy tends to be low.

To better serve its users and always with a perspective of humanizing care, CHTMAD has been expanding its offering of medical specialties across the 3 units, acquiring equipment and technologies that allow patients to undergo all investigations and treatments at CHTMAD, thereby avoiding trips to other hospitals, and has also been modernizing and upgrading its facilities.

Aware that people are the greatest asset of institutions, it has invested in the training of its professionals and in fostering the feeling that they are an integral and essential part of the institution. To combat the challenge of retaining professionals in the country's interior, CHTMAD has focused on developing innovative projects that improve care and the quality of life of its users while also enabling the professional development of its staff.

At the undergraduate level, it collaborates with multiple educational institutions in training students in Medicine, Nursing, Nutrition, and other fields.

It has specialized trainees in 19 medical specialties and several PhDs and PhD candidates.

Clinical research is a fundamental component of CHTMAD, conducting clinical trials since 2008, initiated by researchers or various promoters, and maintaining close relationships with several institutions of higher education, both local and national.

The triad of care activity, teaching, and research is crucial in the development of institutions dedicated to providing healthcare to populations. These activities are much more than the sum of their parts; they serve as true driving forces for these institutions. Care activity provides the opportunity to research and apply research; research attracts talent; teaching enables patient-centered knowledge transmission.

It is CHTMAD's objective to practice patient-centered medicine through practices that meet the standard of care; increase clinical research; create optimal conditions for retaining professionals; and collaborate with local healthcare and educational institutions, establishing itself as an institution that integrates care, teaching, and research.