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Appointment to see a Doctor?

Posted: Wed Sep 18, 2024 10:46pm
10 replies3 members subscribed
E and H

Posts: 6

Location: La Zenia

Joined: 25 Feb 2021

Hi Folks, hopefully never needed, just wondering how easy it would to get a Doctor's appointment here if you are feeling unwell. Thank you in anticipation E&H.

Sligogent

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 6:01am

Sligogent

Very helpful member

Posts: 1355

743 helpful points

Location: Torrevieja

Joined: 31 Jan 2021

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 6:01am

Go  to Health Centre at end  of Cabo Roig  bring  Passport   and your  EIHC  card with  you, and get Registered  with Spanish  Health system  and they should issue  you with a SIP card, this card helps  with Costs of  any  Medication  that may be  required ,  Never leave until  Tomorrow  what you can do today 

elinspain

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:29am

elinspain

Legendary helpful member

Posts: 3393

4343 helpful points

Location: La Mata

Joined: 4 May 2018

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:29am

Hello

 I presume you have some medical insurance, as a non resident you cannot get a SIP card at my salud but urgent treatment can be gained with a EHIC/GHIC card. Private health care via insurance means you can go any Dr or clinic covered by your insurance

Cheer

Elinspain

E and H

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:36am

E and H

Original Poster

Posts: 6

Location: La Zenia

Joined: 25 Feb 2021

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:36am

Sligogent wrote on Thu Sep 19, 2024 6:01am:

Go  to Health Centre at end  of Cabo Roig  bring  Passport   and your  EIHC  card with  you, and get Registered  with Spanish  Health system  and they should issue  you with a SIP card, this card helps  with Costs of  any&...

...nbsp; Medication  that may be  required ,  Never leave until  Tomorrow  what you can do today 

Thank you.

Darro

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:40am

Darro

Super helpful member

Posts: 1678

1490 helpful points

Location: Catral

Joined: 8 Sep 2021

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:40am

The issuance of a temporary (6 month) SIP card is simply a convenience to minimise paperwork when using an EHIC or GHIC which otherwise would need to be repeated each time treatment were required, AFAIK it has no impact on the cost of medications which are borne by the patient but may be reclaimed from the NHS when back in UK.

Not all health centres issue them, it's their choice.

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E and H

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:44am

E and H

Original Poster

Posts: 6

Location: La Zenia

Joined: 25 Feb 2021

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:44am

elinspain wrote on Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:29am:

Hello

 I presume you have some medical insurance, as a non resident you cannot get a SIP card at my salud but urgent treatment can be gained with a EHIC/GHIC card. Private health care via insurance means you can go any Dr or clinic covered by your insurance

Cheer

Elinspain

Thank you. On hols at the moment, hopefully moving here in the near future. Just wondering is the Spanish health care system ok? 

Sligogent

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 10:03am

Sligogent

Very helpful member

Posts: 1355

743 helpful points

Location: Torrevieja

Joined: 31 Jan 2021

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 10:03am

elinspain wrote on Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:29am:

Hello

 I presume you have some medical insurance, as a non resident you cannot get a SIP card at my salud but urgent treatment can be gained with a EHIC/GHIC card. Private health care via insurance means you can go any Dr or clinic covered by your insurance

Cheer

Elinspain

I  am  a  non  Resident,   I  have a SIP  card,I  renewed  earlier  this year in San Luis  Health  centre  and  prior to that  got  it  issued  in Cabo Roig  health  centre,  I  will  be renewed  in November  while out for long  period, 

Health  insurance  is not much use to me  as it  does  not  cover  pre existing  conditions  and if  I  could  purchase  Health insurance  prices  would  be very  very  expensive  And  some Insurance  companies  not  interested  when you have  pre existing conditions 

marcliff

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 10:48am

marcliff

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Posts: 2465

3006 helpful points

Location: Rojales

Joined: 5 Jan 2023

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 10:48am

Depends on what is required. If an emergency then there are A&E and 24 hour clinics but the sign up in Torrevieja states you must show insurance which could be the GHIC.

Some GP surgeries will see you with a GHIC and some will issue a temporary card to save you filling in the forms each time you visit. Some, however, won't and will ask you to complete the forms each time you go.

As a resident if under retirement age then you need private health insurance. If a resident the service is excellent depending on where you live. Our health centre will give you a same day appointment for urgent reasons but generally no more than a day or two for a GP appointment. 

Example, my wife needed an appointment and went along at 1100 on Monday and had an appointment at 1200 the next day.  Another time she was getting chest pains and was told to sit and wait and saw a GP about 40 minutes later.

The longest I waited for an appointment at the GP was 3 days but my GP was on holiday and they fitted me in with someone else. You will generally get to see one particular doctor that you are registered with and very quickly. Places like Benidorm would be longer wait times in the Summer months and Torrevieaja when the population goes up from 100,000 to 400,000 but generally very quickly especially for those registered as residents. 

Specialist appointments from a referral from your GP are usually done very quickly. Appointments normally within a week but the only time I needed one was given one 4 days later. 

Torrevieja hospital is going through a lot of changes so waiting times can be fairly long depending on the problem. Cataracts, for example, are normally seen to within 5 months but people have been waiting twice as long lately although they are working evenings and weekends to clear the backlog. 

A neighbour of ours had a lump in her breast which turned out to be cancerous. Two weeks for several scans and results to be returned, saw the oncologist on a Wednesday for a complete regime to be planned and treatment was started on the Friday. 

So very good, in our experience. 

Stephanie86

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 2:00pm

Stephanie86

Legendary helpful member

Posts: 2989

2258 helpful points

Location: Lliber

Joined: 4 May 2017

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 2:00pm

E and H wrote on Thu Sep 19, 2024 9:44am:

Thank you. On hols at the moment, hopefully moving here in the near future. Just wondering is the Spanish health care system ok? 

Excellent, but do not come without travel medical insurance if for holiday. If you are moving here, depends on your age, but if retired you should be eligible for transfer from uk NHs to Spanish equivalent with correct paperwork.

This summer had both my husband and mother admitted to the local hospital Husband not for long but excellent ongoing treatment, just awaiting date of op atm, but not immediately life threatening so will have to wait for a while. My mother admitted from Urgencias into hospital, purely for palliative care, as she was too old for what would have been a gruelling operation for someone aged 98, which the vascular surgeon was not prepared to undertake. She died some ten days later, as expected, but during that period the care and consideration was excellent, I stayed there with her the whole time apart from a couple of quick visits home. I cannot speak for Torrevieja, but the Dénia hospital is all private rooms with en-suite facilities and bed available in the patient’s room for family, as it is expected that you will stay. That was the third admission for her over roughly five years and the care and treatment each time was excellent.

E and H

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 2:43pm

E and H

Original Poster

Posts: 6

Location: La Zenia

Joined: 25 Feb 2021

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2024 2:43pm

Stephanie86 wrote on Thu Sep 19, 2024 2:00pm:

Excellent, but do not come without travel medical insurance if for holiday. If you are moving here, depends on your age, but if retired you should be eligible for transfer from uk NHs to Spanish equivalent with correct paperwork.

This summer had both my husband and mother admitted to the local hospital Husband not for long but excellent ongoing treatment, just awaiting date of op atm, but not immediately life threatening so will have to wait for a while. My mother admitted from Urgencias into hospital, purely for palliati...

...ve care, as she was too old for what would have been a gruelling operation for someone aged 98, which the vascular surgeon was not prepared to undertake. She died some ten days later, as expected, but during that period the care and consideration was excellent, I stayed there with her the whole time apart from a couple of quick visits home. I cannot speak for Torrevieja, but the Dénia hospital is all private rooms with en-suite facilities and bed available in the patient’s room for family, as it is expected that you will stay. That was the third admission for her over roughly five years and the care and treatment each time was excellent.

Thank you so much for the info. Sorry to hear about your Mother. All sounds pretty positive re health care. As you probably know health care in UK/Ireland struggling at the moment. Thanks again E&H.

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Airport Service Taxi Mil Palmeras  Torre de la Horadada
POSITIVE BELIEFS
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Espana Dream Properties
interior building work
Expat Services
Jennifer Cunningham Insurances SL
Gentlevan Removals
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