The lack of personnel following the takeover by the Ministry of Health of Torrevieja Hospital and local Health Centres has begun to take its toll on their day-to-day operation.
The situation does not stem from further cuts but rather the bureaucratic sluggishness in processing job vacancies. The opportunities have now been advertised but the government department is much less reactive in making employment decisions than their predecessors, Ribera Salud.
The CSIF union, which represents staff in the Torrevieja Health Department, warned on Friday that the early days of direct management of the hospital by the Conselleria de Sanidad Universal y Salud Pública “are very complicated” and although the new management are making a great effort, more resources are needed, “given the high demands by patients at the current time.”
They say that the main problem is the “lack of speed with which job applications are being processed,” particularly in areas of greater pressure such as emergencies where there is currently a shortage of 5 doctors.
Elsewhere, in the Vega Baja’s Medical Centres, the union has warned that the Torrevieja health department needs to hire 16 family doctors and 5 more pediatricians than it currently has so that the doctor-to-patient ratios meet the limits established by the Generalitat: 1,500 patients per family doctor and 900 per pediatrician.
