Patients in the Orihuela Health Department are facing response times of up to 60 minutes for emergency medical assistance due to a lack of local resources. The UGT trade union has lodged a formal complaint with the Síndic de Greuges, warning that the absence of a second medical emergency unit in the area creates an intolerable life-threatening risk for residents.
According to the healthcare resource map and emergency plans established by the regional government, the Orihuela Health Department is meant to be allocated two Emergency Medical Assistance Service (SAMU) units. These resources are designed to cover the vast geographical area, population size, and critical health needs of the inland Vega Baja region.
However, the current healthcare transport contract maintained by the regional Ministry of Health keeps one of the allocated SAMU units permanently deployed to the neighbouring Torrevieja Health Department to cover the Orihuela Costa area. As a result, the urban center of Orihuela, its extensive outlying districts, and assigned municipalities are left entirely dependent on a single SAMU vehicle stationed in the area.
When simultaneous medical emergencies occur, or when the sole local unit is undertaking critical patient transfers to the reference hospital, response times for Red Code emergencies systematically exceed clinical safety boundaries. Emergency services are forced to mobilize vehicles from surrounding departments, stretching wait times for specialized medical care to between 45 and 60 minutes.
UGT emphasized that medical staff are being forced into severe circumstances without adequate technical support or transport provisions, resulting in acute stress and psychosocial strain. The union has requested that the Síndic de Greuges demand a formal explanatory report from the regional Ministry of Health regarding the territorial criteria behind the transfer of the unit, and issue a recommendation directing the immediate and real deployment of both assigned SAMU units to Orihuela.
The issue was also debated during the full council meeting in Orihuela on Thursday 30 July. Political group Ciudadanos presented a motion demanding a second SAMU deployment on the coast, particularly during the summer period when the local population increases.
During the session, Cambiemos spokesperson Leticia Pertegal pointed out that the Orihuela SAMU is frequently used for secondary inter-hospital transfers such as hemodynamics, leaving the area uncovered and forcing emergency dispatch from Guardamar with wait times close to an hour. Vox councillor Mari Carmen Portugal noted that a single SAMU currently services a population of 183,000 residents, while PSOE councillor Luis Quesada highlighted that emergency response for heart attacks or severe accidents should arrive within 10 minutes rather than 50 minutes. Quesada contrasted Orihuela’s ratio of over 180,000 residents to one SAMU against the neighbouring Torrevieja department, which manages 225,000 health cards across three SAMU units.
In response, Orihuela Councillor for Health Irene Celdrán stated that resources are dispatched appropriately according to immediate needs without municipal boundaries, though she confirmed she has held meetings with the regional Ministry to request a second unit. The motion to request enhanced emergency services was voted through with support from Ciudadanos, Cambiemos, PSOE, and Vox, while the governing Partido Popular abstained.
