Moving to Spain and curious about the quality of the healthcare system there? Sally has lived in Spain since 2006. She shares her first-hand experience of the Spanish healthcare system.
An insider’s look at healthcare in Spain.
Our health and how it is treated is a concern for everyone. Since Brexit, British people have joined other non-EU citizens in that they will need to have private health insurance until they apply for and receive residency.
Those who are already residents have full access to the Spanish Health Service, which is free. Non-residents and tourists can use it for emergencies only using their GHIC card.
Hopefully, you won’t need to use the many services offered by the Spanish Health Service, maybe just a visit to your local GP at the CAP, Centros de Atención Primaria in most of Spain and Centre d’Atenció Primaria in Catalonia. This is effectively a triage centre with GPs, nurses, paediatricians and gynaecologists. Many have 24-hour emergency services too. Specialists will be seen in the local hospital, and you will need your doctor to refer you.
There is a CAP in every reasonably sized town, and it will be your first port of call.
However, what happens if the CAP emergency department decides you need further treatment?
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Emergencies
I have lived in Spain since 2006 and unfortunately have needed the assistance of the emergency services on several occasions, the most recent being three times in a month. On each occasion I went to the CAP emergency centre, expecting to be given a prescription but each time I ended up in the local hospital either for the day or on the last occasion for several days.
The CAP emergency service is limited in that they don’t have x-ray machines, laboratories and other necessary medical equipment on site so protocol says if necessary, they have to send you to the local hospital by ambulance unless you are fit to drive or someone can drive you.
The ambulance service is free to take you but after treatment, you have to find your own way home. The ambulance staff are very well-trained and professional.
Rather than going to the CAP, you can go directly to your hospital emergency department. However, if you have a serious condition, it is often better to go to the CAP first and arrive at the hospital by ambulance as the emergency department there is usually very busy, and you will have a longer wait if you go there independently.
Hospital emergency department
I can only describe my local hospital which has recently been extended as the population in my area is constantly growing, but I have visited friends in other regions in hospital and it seems that they have much the same organisation.
You are seen on priority, in other words, it’s not a case of who arrived first but who needs the most urgent care. This can result in a long wait to be seen if you have anything less than a severe injury or illness. Two hours is the average in my local hospital, but it very much depends on the day as sometimes it can be much quicker.
You will go to a triage nurse who will ask some questions and then move you on to a waiting area inside. Again, the wait will depend on why you are there, even if you are brought in by ambulance, somewhere between 30 and 45 minutes in my experience.
Cubicles in Spain are called “boxes”. In my hospital, they are more like small rooms. There will be a couple of nurses assigned to you from a central nursing station and a doctor. Protocol demands that they run numerous tests and if the department is busy, it can take several hours for the results to come back. The emergency department will have its own x-ray area.
While waiting for the test results you will be treated in your “box.” I find the staff here absolutely great, but I suppose this varies everywhere. Often, they will treat you there for a few hours and then send you home or they will decide to keep you in.
Staying in hospital
Sally shares what it is like to stay in hospital in Spain.
There are no wards in Spain, rather patients are housed in rooms with two beds and a shared bathroom on a gender basis, so men with men and women with women. Each room has a TV, and the patients decide between themselves what to watch and when.
You should be aware that it is common for Spanish family members to stay with their sick relatives throughout the day and even the night, though night vigil is becoming less common. This can be disturbing for the other patient as they will be listening to chat for long periods. I earnestly advise you to ask someone to bring you noise-cancelling headphones!
I’m not sure if this applies to all hospitals but the Wi-Fi in mine only works on your mobile phone, not a laptop or tablet. I was able to watch Netflix on my phone so you will also need your phone charger! Kindle is very useful too.
The day starts at 6 am but breakfast isn’t served until around 8 am. Lunch around 2 pm, a snack mid-afternoon and dinner around 8 pm. The food I was offered was quite good, especially the soups and chicken dishes. Fresh fruit and salad were on offer every day. Quiet time, with TVs off and no unnecessary noise, is from 12.30 am to 6 am.
Visiting times are very flexible so you might find an influx of visitors coming for your room companion.
The staff
The hospital staff are professional and efficient, some have a better bedside manner than others but they are there to make you well so that is their priority. You will see the doctor treating you once a day, or maybe different doctors in the same department. I saw three during my stay, all specialists in the same category.
Some patients constantly ring the bell for the nurses which can be annoying both for them and you, as the other patient in the room. I realise that it might be because they are lonely or worried, so best to try to live with it quietly.
The treatment and care
Finally, the treatment I have received on each occasion of my hospital stay has been excellent and the majority of the staff, from the nurses to the cleaners have been pleasant and helpful, often amusing and light-hearted.
I speak Spanish so for me language isn’t a problem but if you don’t most of the nursing staff and doctors speak English to a varying degree. You can ask for a translator if you feel unsure who will be provided by the local Red Cross as volunteers. In fact, I have often been called to translate for tourists of different nationalities as I am on the volunteer list.
Nowhere is perfect but I can honestly reassure anyone nervous about doctors and hospitals that the Spanish State Health Service is still very good despite financial cuts and a lack of key staff in most regions. The local CAPs also need more staff and it can take up to a week to get an appointment with your GP. Again, this varies from region to region. Nevertheless, when you need medical care you will be given it and if it is an emergency the service comes into its own.
Suggested reading:
- Moving to Spain from the UK: Visas, Residency & More
- Living – Spain Property Guides
- A guide to renting in Spain
- Valencia: the UK’s favourite European coastal destination
