Costa Blanca

In Alicante province, attacks on doctors have increased by 37%

In Spain, a doctor is attacked every ten hours. Although there are fewer attacks in the province of Alicante, the issue is becoming more prevalent. In fact, the number of these incidents (both verbal and physical) increased by 37% in 2024 as compared to the previous year.

The Official College of Physicians of Alicante (COMA), which received 26 allegations of assaults on physicians (while doing their duties) last year, published these numbers. Males made up 58% of the victims, with the majority being under 35.

Additionally, there were more physical assaults—5 occurrences compared to the 2 in 2023—and threats and coercion against doctors in their workplace—16 compared to the 13 that were reported to the College the year before. verbal abuse, to which the five notifications for harassment and insults must be added.

The majority of these violent incidents—24, or 92% of the total—took place in the public system. 65% of the attacks reported by the COMA in 2024 occurred in health centres and primary care emergency departments, continuing the trend of prior years that shows this to be the most violent and dangerous medical setting for physicians.

In the province of Alicante, the aggressor typically takes the form of a guy under 40 who is either a patient or a friend. Regarding the reasons behind the attacks, the most prominent ones are the disparities in the medical care that was given and the failure to provide the patient’s recommended medication.

Dr. José Manuel Peris, the Secretary General of the COMA, notes that although more doctors are reporting violent incidents they see too frequently, “these figures do not reflect the magnitude of the problem.” Many more attacks go unreported due of fear of potential retaliation, exhaustion from the copious paperwork necessary, the sluggishness of the legal system, or the absurd penalties that complaints frequently result in.

“We need stronger penalties, as well as a specific law against assaults on healthcare personnel, as already exists in other Autonomous Communities, and on-site reporting,” states the general secretary of COMA.

“Of course, threats and coercion, but also insults and humiliation, must never occur, and this must be made clear to the aggressors,” Dr. Peris says, urging his fellow medical professionals to always report any aggression. We run the risk of internalising and normalising them, which is not an option, and doctors do not deserve them. You must report them to the COMA and the police since remaining silent about the aggressions is tantamount to endorsing them.

Workshops on prevention

As part of the celebration of the “European Day against Attacks on Doctors and Health Professionals” on March 12th, the Medical Union of the Valencian Community (CESM-CV) and the Alicante Medical Association will collaborate with the Alicante Command’s Civil Guard and the National Police of the Alicante Provincial Police Station to host two workshops on self-defence and prevention techniques.

Inspector D. Vicente Romero, the Provincial Police Territorial Health Interlocutor’s working team, will conduct the first practical session. Next Wednesday, March 12th, at 1:00 p.m., the meeting will take place in the Juan XXIII Health Center’s assembly hall. The agents will give the center’s medical staff specialised training in this workshop to help them steer clear of dangerous circumstances.

This year marks the first time the COMA and the Civil Guard have collaborated on a workshop. The Santa Pola Health Centre was selected as the location. On March 25th, the Guardia Civil’s Police-Health Interlocutor, Lieutenant José Agustín Serna of the Alicante Command Headquarters, and his team will conduct a hands-on training for medical professionals.

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Related Topics:Abuse Alicante Attacks Community Emergency Harassment Health National Police Province Public Spain

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Costa Blanca

Consum announces the opening of new stores in Aldaia, Alaquàs, Sueca, Xàtiva, Massanassa and Torrevieja

Consum expands its operations in the Valencian Community and announces the opening of additional stores in six towns throughout Valencia. The Valencian cooperative’s comprehensive network of supermarkets in the region is further enhanced by these new openings.

New Consum stores are scheduled to open in Valencia in 2025

The following are the new stores that Consum will establish in the towns of Valencia:

Alaquàs

Aldaia

Massanassa

Sueca

Xàtiva

Torrevieja (Alicante)

Three of the stores that were acquired from Kuups last year have enabled the establishment of some of these new supermarkets. These have already been assigned an estimated opening date:

Massanassa (C/ Medi Ambient), which is scheduled to commence operations at the conclusion of May.
Alaquàs (Av. Blasco Ibáñez) and Aldaia (Av. Miguel Hernández) will launch under the Consum brand in the middle of the year.
Consum intends to maintain its pace of establishing 53 new supermarkets in 2025, including 18 of its own stores and 35 Charter stores, as well as to execute 31 renovations and expansions.

In 2024, Consum achieved revenues of €4,707.03 million, a 7.3% increase, and profits of €108.7 million, a 7.5% increase from the previous year. These figures substantiate the business model advocated by the Valencian cooperative, which is founded on price competitiveness, a diverse selection of leading brands without sacrificing the quality of its own brand, and a steadfast dedication to ensuring customer savings through discounts and gift vouchers. More than €62.2 million has been allocated to this initiative.

Antonio Rodríguez Lázaro, the CEO of Consum, stated that “these results are indicative of the dedication of our entire team, the confidence of our customers, and our capacity to adjust to change while maintaining our commitment to sustainability and innovation.”

It maintained its sixth position in the national classification of distribution companies by surface area throughout the year, increasing its market share by 0.1% to 4.7% of the national market. Nielsen reports that its market share by sales in its area of influence is 13.45%.

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Costa Blanca

The El Raso, Guardamar celebrates with a Tapas Route and concerts between May 15th and 17th

The programme for the third edition of the Guardamar del Segura City Council’s festivities has been unveiled in collaboration with the residents’ association of the El Raso Urbanisation, an area that is home to a significant number of international residents.

Between May 15th and 17th, the El Raso Urbanisation will commemorate its festivities with a Tapas Route and concerts. The festivities will take place on Thursday, May 15th and Friday, May 16th, and will feature an International Tapas Route featuring twelve establishments, which is two more than the previous year. María Venerdi, the Councillor for Festivals, has announced that participants will be able to experience tapas and a drink for 3.50 euros. Additionally, participants will have the opportunity to participate in a drawing for a variety of rewards and vote for their preferred tapa on the “Tapaporte.” Last year’s edition saw the sale of over 7,000 tapas, as emphasised by the local organisers.

José Luis Sáez, the mayor of Guardamar, has emphasised the significance of “neighbourhoods becoming increasingly integrated into the dynamics of the municipality,” and he has noted that this event has “consolidated itself and become a great gastronomic celebration for the municipality.”

The city council will also offer a transport service that will travel to all participating venues in order to simplify the process of travelling.

Auditorio del Campo will host a grand celebration on Saturday, May 17th, commencing at 6 p.m. The event will feature a variety of musical groups, including the Costa Blanca Singers, who will serve as the opening act.

The charitable nature of these festivities has been emphasised by the Guardamar councillor for Festivals. The El Raso festival committee has sold T-shirts for the Tapas Route at a price of 10 euros. The proceeds of these sales, in addition to those from the bar service on the 17th, will be donated entirely to charitable causes, including the ‘El Milagro de Ver’ Foundation, which is dedicated to enhancing eye health in developing countries, and to those impacted by DANA in Valencia.

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Costa Blanca

Elche joins the national protests for Palestine on May 10th

Tomorrow, Saturday May 10th, the Elche Palestine Solidarity Committee has scheduled a demonstration in accordance with the national mobilisations under the slogan “Move for Palestine.” The march will commence at 7:00 p.m., and the rally will be held at the Chimeneas de L’Algeps in Elche at 6:30 p.m.

The initiative aims to denounce the situation in Gaza and Palestine as a whole, and to encourage citizens to demonstrate their solidarity and demand genuine action to halt the violence. The Elche Palestine Solidarity Committee extends an invitation to all individuals, irrespective of their gender or age, to participate in this collective demonstration.

As part of a coordinated campaign to increase awareness of the situation in Palestine and demand an end to the violence and occupation, this mobilisation is one of a series of demonstrations that have been organised in various cities throughout Spain.