Psychological counselling line has handled nearly half a million calls in six years

Wednesday, 1 April 2026RSS
Psychological counselling line has handled nearly half a million calls in six years

The SNS 24 psychological counselling line has received almost half a million calls since its creation in April 2020, shortly after the start of the pandemic, and is currently approaching 430 daily consultations. Data released this Wednesday, April 1st, by the Shared Services of the Ministry of Health (SPMS) indicates that in six years of operation, the line, staffed by a team of approximately 170 psychologists, has handled a total of 448,000 calls. The service, which has been available in English since 2022, primarily addresses issues related to anxiety, worsening of pre-existing psychopathology, and crisis management. In emergencies where there is a risk to the user or others, calls are transferred to the INEM for appropriate rescue intervention.

Context & Explainers

If you need emergency care and a local ED is understaffed, call 112 for life‑threatening situations or contact the national health triage line (SNS 24) for urgent guidance; the operator can direct you to the nearest hospital with capacity or arrange an ambulance. As an expat, also consider local private hospitals or clinics if available and keep your health insurance details and ID ready to speed up admission.

AI Summary AvailableSNS 24 psychological helpline handles nearly half a million callsRead the synthesized summary with context and explainers
View full article on dn.pt

RSS source