The Ministry of Health reports that the waiting list for surgery in Alicante’s ten hospitals still exceeds 26,000 individuals, despite recent improvements.
Compared to last December, official numbers have been updated. The Generalitat Valenciana reports that the number of Alicante citizens waiting for the surgeon’s call has decreased from 27,559 to 26,246, based on data collected twice a year.
This constitutes 38.2% of the total in the Valencian Community, with 68,638 patients waiting for surgery, a drop of 5,520 from the previous count. Health Minister Marciano Gómez attributed the improvement to the direct impact of DANA, as surgical schedules in affected areas were affected in the three weeks following the October 29th event, resulting in an increase of nearly 9,000 people in half a year from the previous year.
Hospitals in Valencia have seen the greatest substantial reduction in delays. Out of the thousands who have decreased the waiting list, only 1,300 have undergone surgery in Alicante hospitals (23%). Doctor Balmis and the General of Elche have a 135-day wait, exceeding the average of 80 days in the Community and trailing only the Castellón Health Department, which also has 135 days.
By the end of 2023, there were 22,930 patients waiting for intervention in Alicante’s ten hospitals. Before and after the pandemic, operating rooms were suspended. The number of patients has increased by 6,459 since February 2020, when there were 19,787.
Health emphasises that very unwell people are intervened early
The Ministry of Health reports a 34-day reduction in the average wait time for surgical treatments for priority 1 patients, from 61 days in June 2023 to 27 days in June 2025. Patients with life-threatening illnesses, such as cancer, require immediate surgery.
These users of the Health Service have surgical treatments that cannot be delayed for more than 30 days due to their programmability. The number of active patients in this group decreased from 2,967 in June 2023 to 1,007 in June 2025, resulting in a 66% reduction and 1,960 fewer persons. This marks a significant milestone in increasing access to healthcare. There is no province-specific data for urgent patients.
Health criteria:
The Ministry of Health reports ongoing progress in lowering surgical waiting lists in the Valencian Community, with a projected global improvement by 2025.
The information indicates “the commitment of the Generalitat to the prioritisation of the most critical cases and a direct improvement in the quality of care, based on health and non-health criteria statisticians.” Marciano Gómez, Minister of Health, aimed to reduce the number of patients with priority 1 due to the critical nature of their conditions.
Priority 2 interventions, which must be completed within 90 days, have decreased from 17,214 in 2023 to 11,189 in 2025, resulting in a 6,025 decrease in the community, according to Health.
More than six months
Among the 26,246 patients now awaiting surgery in Alicante hospitals, half of patients have been waiting for a surgeon’s call for less than three months, 4,990 for up to six months, and 7,732 for more than six months.
The largest hospital in the province is Doctor Balmis de Alicante, with 7,158 patients, followed by Hospital of Elche, Sant Joan, Virgen de la Salud de Elda, Dénia, Torrevieja, Marina Baixa, Orihuela, Vinalopó, and others.
Some have improved since December 2024, while others have worsened. Data at the time were as follows: There were 7,467 patients at Balmis Hospital in Alicante, 3,349 at Virgen de la Salud in Elda, 3,271 at Elche General Hospital, 3,159 at Sant Joan Hospital, 2,205 in Orihuela, 1,983 at Dénia Hospital, 1,622 in Torrevieja, 1,497 at Virgen de los Lirios in Alcoy, 1,476 at Vinalopó Hospital, and 1,530 at Marina Baixa Hospital.
Carles Esteve, a CompromÃs deputy in the Valencian Parliament and spokesperson for the coalition’s Health Minister, has accused the Consell of causing an increase in healthcare waiting lists. “We are worse off now than we were two years ago,” he complained.
Esteve has criticised the management of the President of the Generalitat, Carlos Mazón, and the Minister of Health, Marciano Gómez, accusing them of failing to improve Valencian healthcare despite increased funding. After the covid pandemic, waiting lists improved every month at the Botanic. However, since Mazón’s PP, the data has worsened. What does the Health Department intend to use this budget boost for?
disputed.
Lack of personnel
In the Community Valenciana, the General Hospitals of Alicante and Elche have the highest average delay of 135 days, matching the Castellón Health Department’s figure. “A disastrous situation that had never been seen in those hospitals,” Esteve recalled.
He criticised the PP government for failing to support public hospital staff. “They don’t hire more personnel, and some retirements are left uncovered,” he stated. He also objected that “they have reduced salaries to staff to reduce the waiting list and, in many cases, have stopped paying them.”
According to the CompromÃs politician, staff-owned programs have effectively reduced waiting lists since the Covid epidemic.
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