A group of Public Health Resident Doctors attending the 65th Specialisation Course in Public Health (CESP) at the National School of Public Health, NOVA University Lisbon (NOVA NSPH), visited Ramón y Cajal University Hospital in Madrid on 15 and 16 June 2026.
In addition to the participation of Paulo Sousa, Co-Coordinator of the course and Professor at NOVA NSPH, the initiative also brought together resident doctors from the Institute of Public Health of the University of Porto (ISPUP), who requested to join the visit. Recognised as one of Spain’s leading reference centres in Preventive Medicine and Hospital Public Health, Ramón y Cajal University Hospital has welcomed CESP cohorts from NOVA NSPH since 2019. As in previous editions, the visit enabled participants to gain first-hand insight into the Spanish healthcare system and the approaches adopted in patient safety and public health within the hospital setting.
The first day was dedicated to the scientific session Avanzando en seguridad del paciente: prevención, evidencia e innovación (“Advancing Patient Safety: Prevention, Evidence and Innovation”), organised by the hospital’s Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health. Throughout the morning, participants discussed a range of key topics related to infection prevention and control and patient safety in surgical settings, including the reprocessing of single-use medical devices under Regulation (EU) 2017/745, the SAFEST project for the continuous improvement of surgical patient safety, preoperative hair removal and its contribution to infection prevention bundles, root cause analysis of a sentinel event, the impact of multidrug resistance on surgical site infections, recommendations for the prevention of prosthetic joint infections (ICM 2026), and programmes for the prevention of urinary tract infections and the appropriate use of urinary catheterisation. The participation of Esmeralda Nunes, from the Portuguese Oncology Institute of Porto, added a strong Iberian dimension to the exchange of knowledge and good practices.
On the second day, the group was welcomed by the hospital’s management and the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health. The resident doctors had the opportunity to engage with the department’s professionals, including consultant physicians and specialty residents, exchanging experiences and learning about the different areas of activity of the hospital’s public health team. In addition to exploring the department’s work, participants also visited the Central Sterilisation Unit.
NOVA NSPH maintains a close collaboration with Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, built on the continuous exchange of experience and good practices. Alongside the annual visits organised within the framework of the CESP and mobility activities—implemented through doctoral placements at NOVA NSPH for residents and specialists in Preventive Medicine and Public Health from the Madrid hospital—the partnership has also included research placements for Portuguese Public Health resident doctors within the hospital’s teams.
The initiative further strengthened this collaboration and was very positively received by participants, both for the technical knowledge acquired and for the opportunity to reflect on the role of Public Health within the hospital setting, particularly in the current context of the Local Health Units.
