No 1083 Monday 7th - Sunday 13th July 2025
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The Costa Blanca’s oldest ‘FREE’ English language newspaper - WITH THE LARGEST LOCAL CIRCULATION
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s summer gets underway, Alicante Province is grappling with a growing healthcare crisis, with Torrevieja emerging as one of the worst-affected areas. Doctor vacations and inadequate staffing replacements have led to unprecedented delays, highlighting systemic issues in healthcare planning and delivery during the peak summer months. SEVERE SHORTAGES IN TORREVIEJA One of the most acute problems is in Torrevieja, where only 11.79% of primary care physicians have their holidays covered, and hospital replacement rates are barely over 4%. In contrast, other parts of the province, such as Marina Alta, have over 60% of doctors replaced, though they still face delays. According to Maria Jose Gimeno, deputy general secretary of the CESMCV Medical Union, “Torrevieja is in terrible shape,” citing a near-collapse of primary care services. While nurse staffing has improved, the lack of doctors leaves critical gaps in care.
T O R R E V I E J A H E A LT H A U T H O R I T Y C R I S I S A M I D PROVINCE-WIDE SUMMER STAFFING SHORTAGES
This staffing shortfall has pushed patient wait times in Torrevieja to 12 days, with some unable to get appointments until early August, even for basic procedures like blood tests.
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