• Galiano: “it is not acceptable that patients with health problems, have to travel 100 km to La Vila, in order to be treated”

Following a story that first appeared in The Leader Newspaper last week the Orihuela Councilor for Health, José Galiano, has questioned on Monday the referral of patients from the Vega Baja Hospital a hundred kilometres to Villajoyosa, particularly when the Torrevieja University Hospital is only 15 kilometers away.

He said that “given the impact that it is having amongst out citizens and the complaints of being received from members of the public, I have contacted the management of two of the Health Departments that serve our municipality, in both Orihuela and Torrevieja ”.

As the Oriolano councillor has stated “it is not acceptable that patients with health problems, have to travel 100 km to La Vila, to be treated, neither is it fair that their relatives have also to make the same length of journey every time they wish to visit.

In a press statement Galiano explained that “I have insisted to the Manager of the Orihuela Hospital that he prioritise referrals to the closest hospitals in Torrevieja and Elche, especially after the Torrevieja Hospital Management has confirmed to me that he has had, and currently has, availability of sufficient beds both in the ward and in the ICU ”.

He said that decisions must be taken that are both efficient and made in the best interest of the patient and families, not those that are made by ideology or because of political pressures that can only cause harm or further complicate their situation.”