The Doctor Esquerdo socio-health complex in the municipality of Sant Joan has a day hospital for patients with anorexia or bulimia, for example. This day hospital allows for specialised treatments without the need to keep the patient hospitalised for extended periods, the Valencian government stated in a press release. The Minister of Health, Marciano Gómez, and the President of the Alicante Provincial Council, Toni Pérez, visited the facility yesterday, Monday 20th July. The lack of this centre meant that the average length of stay could be double that recorded in the units in Valencia and Castellón, the statement noted.
The adult day hospital for Personality Disorders and Subacute Conditions is relocating to the Doctor Esquerdo complex to be closer to San Juan Hospital. This centre has increased its staff and is implementing a specific programme for subacute patients following hospital discharge.
The two day hospitals each have 25 places and have two psychiatrists, three psychologists, two occupational therapists, one social worker, three nurses and two nursing assistants.
The future Child and Adolescent Inpatient Unit will include seven single rooms for acute patients and two four-bed apartments for the transition to home care for subacute cases and crisis intervention. All of this will be housed in the same ground-floor building. The Valencian Regional Government will contribute 255,000 euro to the construction project, which the Provincial Council will put out to tender this year, with construction scheduled to begin in 2027. The unit will feature an innovative design, unique in Spain, as currently only a few similar examples, without external facilities, exist in Catalonia. It will have 15 beds and occupy an area of 890 square metres, including a landscaped outdoor space.
The Valencian Regional Government will assume for the first time part of the financing of the Psychiatric Medium Stay Unit of the Alicante Provincial Council, which currently has 56 beds, in order to collaborate in its maintenance expenses.
The Minister of Health has highlighted the reinforcement of mental health care being carried out by the Ministry: We have incorporated 800 more specialists, 60% more than at the beginning of the legislature, to offer closer, more specialised and quality care.
